Subject: Re: What hapened to Philip Price
From: paradise@netcom.com
Date: 1995/06/26
Message-Id:
Sender: paradise@netcom7.netcom.com
References: <803861978snz@headroom.demon.co.uk>
Organization: NETCOM On-Line Communication Services (408 261-4700 guest)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.atari.8bit
Yep, I still exist. No, I never got around to uploading my old source to AR.
(Who knows if the floppies still work after all these years)(I am
definatly a procrastinator). Yes, I mainly do work on silicon graphics
workstations used for testing planes at my present job (Same job since I
left the game business). Yes , at home I have an IBM PC(and my old
ataris, a c64, my amiga is gone though). Yes I am on a standards
committee(But it is the ansi C++ standards committee).
On the otherhand, I do want to thank everyone who has enjoyed my past
work. That is of immense value to me personally. Plus, it may contribute
to me reentering the game business. The business has matured a bit since
I was in it(Hey :), Tail of Beta Lyrae was written on a 32k ram Atari 400
with a cassette drive, and I had no running water and slept on a green
bed with mold(Also I had no, and I mean I had no money then), by the time I
left the
business I did have a roof over my head(a room in someone else's house), no
car(I soon bought a ford escort from a cousin), and no savings. I left
because I did not want to have to forever fight for a fair share of the
value of my craft, I wanted to have a degree of financial security, so I
left to
join a Fortune 100 company, who I have worked for ever since(I now own a
home, a car,[still no savings though:). But even though I get to design
complex systems at my current job, they rarely need all that I can give.
Therefore , the current work is less invigorating than designing and
implementing games(Where the need for creativity and originality is
never-ending[If you are with the right team]). I have had people at my
current work tell me that I should follow my art, and not just settle for
corporate comfort. I have had strangers at the local Walmart, remember
who I am(This ten years since I left the business), and say that they
just do not make them like that anymore, that there was something
intangible, but extremely attractive in my work; and finally, of
course, there are the people in this newsgroup, who still at times, talk
about AR (and even Beta Lyrae;). The fact that my work touched people is
confirmed by these
reactions. This in turns makes me want to give once more all that I can
give that will bring some joy to others.
I am glad I have been able to serve my country by being a part
of a team which designed telemetry systems. You might say that when I
left the game industry I beat my
plowshare into a weapon, and perhaps it is now time to beat my weapon back
into a plowshare. I have tried to write games on the side(like I say it's
in my blood , I been writing games since I was 7[My sister was my
playtester:) ], but when I try to write games on the side, I find that I
get to distracted at work, and work distracts me when I am at home. In
otherwords I can't write games part time. So the only way it will happen
is full-time.
I am currently in the final stages of being hired as a lead programmer at
a game company. If their offer is attractive, then I may finally be back
in the business, I will then contribute to degree permitted by my position.
Oh, it looks like this summer I will finally get my BSCS, that too has
been a long time coming, but it's moment is near. Also, Gary Gilbertson
still lives in Hawaii, and we keep in touch[I used to have midi copies of
all the ar songs until my latest hard disk crash, will have to wait till
Gary sends me replacements).
Finally, I once more wish to say thanks to everyone who has found some
happiness through my works, it's a two way street, your happiness, brings
me happiness.
Thanks,
Philip Price
paradise@netcom.com
--
Philip Price
paradise@netcom.com