Adventure Gamers: Which of the games that you've already released has done the best?

Dave Gilbert: This is a difficult question. They each did really well for different reasons. The Shivah didn’t bring in much in terms of sales, but it gave me more publicity and press than I could have hoped for. The Blackwell series has done much better financially, but I also spent a lot more time doing marketing and sales. Emerald City will have an entire marketing department behind it, so it’s unfair to compare it to my other games. As esoteric as it might sound, each new game has been built on the shoulders and mistakes of the last one. I learn so much with each project, and I still have a lot more to learn.

AG: Those who've played your existing games know that they've got great characters and dialogue. Can we expect to see more of the same in both ECC and BC?

DG: Yes and yes. ECC has almost 40 unique characters to speak to, and while some are more important than others, they all have their stand-out moment. Blackwell Convergence has less characters (about 15), but you can expect to hear the same kind of dialog and character interactions you’ve seen in the previous Blackwell games. Joey and Rosa have some particularly funny interactions with each other.

AG: What does the future hold for Wadjet Eye? Will there be more Emerald City? More Blackwell? Anything else?

DG: My long term goals are to get into the publishing game myself. Wadjet Eye Games has been funding the development of a game led by Erin Robinson, of Spooks/Nanobots fame, and it’s turning out great. In the future, I hope to publish and fund many more independent developers and have a lot more games available on the site. Eventually, I want to have enough going on to have a new game released every few months, instead of only once or twice a year.

As for more Blackwell, definitely! I’ve planned for the series to have 6 games, so after Convergence there will be three more to go. There’s always the possibility of more Emerald City. The game as it stands definitely has a concrete ending, but this is Oz after all. No official decision has been made about a sequel to ECC yet.

AG: Do you think that you'll stick with the adventure genre? No chance of a “Super Blackwell Bros”?

DG: Good question! I love adventure games but I’m also a huge fan of character based RPG games like Baldur’s Gate and Planescape Torment. When my company is in better financial shape I plan on making one.

AG: I hear you've been travelling to the UK a lot recently; tell us about that project!

DG: Hah. Very subtle. I've been travelling often to the UK to spend time with my lovely fiancée, Janet, whose only fault is that she lives across the Atlantic ocean from me.

AG: Can we expect to see some adventures set in the UK in the future?

DG: Who knows! But I've visited the future in-laws on their Somerset farm and that locale always seemed like a sweet place to set a game.

AG: You've met up with Steve Ince of So Blonde fame; was that a matter of seasoned game developers comparing notes?

DG: We got in touch through a game forum. I had purchased his game Mr. Smoozles Goes Nutso and I wrote him to tell him that I liked it. Somehow, the subject of me visiting my fiancée came up and it turned out he doesn't live far from her. So we try to meet up every time I'm over there. It's a bit surreal talking to him, as I am a huge fan of Broken Sword and Beneath a Steel Sky. But he was so laid back and easygoing that it put me totally at ease.

AG: Did you give him any tips for So Blonde?

DG: Hah. No. If anything, he gives me advice.

AG: How do you manage your work/life balance? Will marriage make a difference?

DG: Well, as you say it’s a balance. When you work for yourself, it’s very hard to separate life from work. That’s why I bring my laptop to cafes and work from there, most of the time. It’s my way of separating my work life from my home life, and it’s been crucial to my emotional well-being. Although I can’t say the same about my caffeine intake.

I’d say that marriage will have a stabilizing effect on me. It’s not that I won’t be able to work until 4am anymore, it’s that I won’t WANT to. I love my work, and it’s very fulfilling, but at the end of the day what’s more important? My fiancée has helped me realize that.

AG: Compared to when you first started making commercial games, are you busier or less busy?

DG: It’s funny. I joked earlier that I started this company as a way to avoid getting a real job, but I’ve ended up being more busy and having more responsibility than in any “normal” job I ever had! The games have become more expensive, much larger, more ambitious, and require more team members and administrative details to sort out. Regardless, I wouldn’t have it any other way! I am very proud of the way things have turned out.

AG: Has the economic downturn impacted your sales that you can see? Are Wadjet Eye in imminent danger of going bust? I hope not!

DG: It’s hard to say, since it’s been almost two years since we last released anything. All I can say is that two games are being released this year, and two others are in-the-works. The company has never been more productive. So I remain optimistic.

AG: What do you use for inspiration?

DG: Old movies and mystery books! That should come as no surprise to anyone. I’m also inspired by New York City, and the quirky people that have lived here throughout its history. One of my goals of the Blackwell series is to show off the city, not so much the beauty of it but the people and the lifestyle.

AG: Have you taken any advice or insight from any other indie game developers?

DG: You can’t get anywhere in any business if you go it alone, and the game biz is no exception. When I started out, I made a point of talking to as many people as I could. I chatted with Amanda Fitch (of Aveyond fame) quite a bit at the beginning. Her work is a total inspiration. I also went to many many game industry events here in NYC and spoke to everyone about everything. Even if 90% of the advice or networking is useless, rubbing shoulders with other game developers is so inspiring. There’s only so far you can get if the only networking you do is over the internet.

AG: Do you get to play many adventures yourself, or other games?

DG: Unfortunately, not as many as I’d like. Now that I’m making adventure games, when I have the free time to play a game the last thing I want to play is an adventure. Whenever I play one, I find myself thinking either “Oh, I could do better” or “I could never be that good!” and get frustrated. When I’m in-between projects I plan on catching up, but in the meantime I’ve been giving my new Xbox 360 a workout. I have recently become obsessed with the new Prince of Persia game. That’s a blast.

AG: Thank you for your time, Dave. Have you any closing comments?

DG: Only to thank everyone in the adventure and indie game community for being so awesome and for making the last three years worthwhile. It’s been a pleasure.