Visit to Creative Assembly

Last Wednesday, a group of 10 Deputy Grecians (Year 12s) visited the offices and studio of local video game company, Creative Assembly, in Horsham.

Creative Assembly are an award-winning video game studio, having created world-famous titles such as Alien: Isolation and the Total War series.

Our first stop was the motion capture studio where students participated in a simulated ‘self-destruct sequence’ on board a spaceship.  Dressed in special suits, they created and played out a dramatic scene that was recreated on-screen in the virtual world.  Students decided that they would act theirs out as a fight, so an epic pitched battle, replete with sound effects, ensued!

After the motion capture experience, students headed to see Creative Assembly’s artists, currently at work on Total War: Three Kingdoms, a game that was just released this week.  Students were amazed to see how a career in art could be so easily coupled with the technology sector.  We were also invited into the marketing department and were able to visit the ‘livestream’ studio where, almost every day, Creative Assembly broadcast live plays of their games on the internet.

Finally, students were able to speak with the lead programmer of the award winning game Alien: Isolation.  Students interested in this area found it incredibly enriching to discuss the nature of artificial intelligence and how it plays a role in video-game design.

Our thanks go to Creative Assembly for an excellent and awe-inspiring visit!