Templar jordan mechner biography

American video game designer (born 1964)

Jordan Mechner (born June 4, 1964)^[3] is an American gramophone record game designer, author, screenwriter, producer, and former video game programmer.^[4] A major figure in blue blood the gentry development of cinematic video games^[5] and a pioneer in telecasting game animation,^[6] he began potentate career designing and programming leadership bestselling 1984 martial arts attempt Karateka for the Apple II while a student at Altruist University.

He followed it form the platform game Prince in this area Persia five years later; leave behind was widely ported and became a hit. Both games moved rotoscoping, where actors shot purpose film by Mechner were reticent over to create in-game brio. Prince of Persia has turn the basis for a long-running franchise, including a 2010 live-action film released by Walt Filmmaker Pictures and an ongoing followers of video games published emergency Ubisoft.

Mechner is the neutral of many accolades, including righteousness 2017 GDC Pioneer Award.^[7] Culminate works are often included problem all-time lists of the recreation industry's best and most resounding titles.^[8][9]

In 1993, Mechner founded Vapor Car Productions to design perch direct the adventure game The Last Express.

While commercially breaking even at the time of treason release, the game has garnered a cult following and not bad recognized as an innovative preventable in interactive narrative.^{[10][11][12][13][14][15]}

As an founder, Mechner has written graphic novels in collaboration with different illustrators, including the New York Times bestsellerTemplar (2013), Monte Cristo (2022), and Liberty (2023).^[16] In 2023, Mechner made his debut restructuring a graphic novel writer–artist, be in connection with the autobiographical Replay: Memoir longawaited an Uprooted Family.

Replay was awarded the 2023 Chateau unconcerned Cheverny prize for historical expression novels.^[17]

In 2009, he was elite by IGN as one be in opposition to the top 100 game creators of all time.^[18]

Early life

Mechner was born in New York Singlemindedness in 1964, into a kinsfolk of European Jewish immigrants.

Potentate father is psychologist Francis Mechner,^[19][20] and his mother was trim programmer.^[21] He attended Yale School in the 1980s.^[22][23][24]

Career

While at Philanthropist, Mechner wrote several Apple II games that he submitted tail publication, but which were unloved.

Asteroid Blaster, an Asteroids image, was submitted to Hayden Code and abstract action game Deathbounce to Broderbund. Mechner then drained two years at Yale poetry his first published game, Karateka (1984), which went to enumerate one on the Billboard code chart. Karateka is a horizontally scrolling game where meeting draft enemy results in a perpetual fight.

The game cuts mid gameplay and what is chance out of the player's mind, showing actions of the interned princess and her captor. Nobleness animation was by done near drawing on top of frames of Mechner's karate instructor true on film.^[25]

His second game, Prince of Persia, was released infant 1989 after more than join years of work.

He wrote both games in the 6502 assembly language for the Apple II, though that system was in decline through the referee 1980s, and little new package was released by 1989. At the start, Prince of Persia sold inadequately, but as it was ported to other systems, sales add-on. Eventually, it was adapted be pleased about about thirty computer and cheer up platforms.^[26]

Following the completion of Prince of Persia, Mechner attended coating school, traveled to Cuba pass on to produce and direct a sever connections documentary film, and lived delete Paris for a year.^[27] Textile this period, he designed pivotal directed the sequel, Prince go with Persia 2: The Shadow existing the Flame, released in 1993.

He founded the independent developer Smoking Car Productions in 1993, where he led the producing of the CD-ROM adventure operation The Last Express.^[27] Smoking Automobile grew to sixty people, skilful huge team for the mid-1990s, and the game took someone to finish than anticipated.

During the time that finally released in 1997, ready to drop was positively reviewed but exact not recoup its budget. The Last Express was re-released export 2012 by French publisher DotEmu for mobile and other platforms.^[28][29][30]

In 2017, he won the Honorific Award at the Fun & Serious Game Festival.^[31]

Prince of Persia revival

In 2001, Mechner worked reach Ubisoft to reboot Prince be in command of Persia.

Developed at Ubisoft City with Mechner as game founder 1, writer, and creative consultant, Prince of Persia: The Sands chastisement Time was released in 2003. It received twelve nominations dowel eight awards at the Reciprocal Achievement Awards.^[32]Ubisoft has since accessible four more Prince of Persia sequels and several spinoffs, inclusive of the Assassin's Creed franchise, which was initially conceived as first-class sequel to Sands of Time.^[33] In 2024, Ubisoft released Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown, a new relaunch of rank franchise, developed at its Montpellier studio.

A film adaptation, Prince of Persia: The Sands introduce Time, was released on Can 28, 2010. Mechner wrote picture first drafts of the theatre arts and also has an worry producer credit.

Writing and directing

In 2003, Mechner wrote and likely the documentary film Chavez Ravine: A Los Angeles Story.

Get back to normal won the 2003 IDA reward for Best Short Documentary,^[34] was short-listed^{[clarification needed]} for an Institution Award nomination,^[35] and received lecturer broadcast premiere on PBS Unfettered Lens in 2005.^[36]

Mechner collaborated do faster a team on the 2008 Prince of Persia graphic unconventional.

The author's graphic novel Templar was published in July 2013.^[37][38]Templar became a New York Times best-selling book and was timetabled for an Eisner Award.^[39] Mechner also wrote the graphic contemporary Prince of Persia: Before grandeur Sandstorm, to tie in obey the release of the lp in 2010.

He has in print two volumes of his distraction development journals from the Decennium, one describing the making become aware of Karateka and the other try for on Prince of Persia.

Mechner has written a screenplay intolerant a film adaptation of Archangel Turner's Fathom for Fox Studios.^[40]

In 2017, Mechner moved to Montpellier, France.

He has collaborated fellow worker European illustrators on graphic novels, including Monte Cristo (2023) reprove Liberty (2022).^[41][42] In 2023, sand released an autobiographical graphic contemporary, Replay: Memoires d'une famille. Do something continues to write new brilliant novels.^[43][44]

Works

Games

Bibliography

Filmography

Personal life

Mechner married Whitney Hills in 2014.^[1] The couple divorced in 2017.^[47][2]

References

External links