Erik Wolpaw, writer Portal 1 & 2.
My guest today is Erik Wolpaw, the American writer for some of the funniest video games yet made. In the nineties he and a friend founded the website Old Man Murray, a satirical online publication that poked fun at video gaming’s sacred cows, and established a tone still prevalent across the internet today. The site was read by Gabe Newell, creator of Half-Life, who later hired both writers.At Valve my guest collaborated on a new game in which a vindictive artificial intelligence chastises players as they solve a series of puzzle rooms using a gun that fires warp points. Portal became a smash hit; Stephen Merchant, co-creator of The Office, voiced a character in the sequel. Today my guest continues to work as a semi-retired contractor for Valve. “In defense of games, I want to point out that the writing in plays, including everything by August Strindberg and The Lion King, is 100% pure crap,” he once joked. “So, we’re doing better than they are, even though they have the benefit of mostly not being about space marines.”Play the console:Earthworm JimEverQuestGrand Theft Auto IIIDemon's SoulsSlay the SpireThank you for listening to My Perfect Console. Please consider becoming a Patreon supporter; your small monthly subscription will help to make the podcast sustainable for the long term, and you'll receive bonus content, and access to the My Perfect Console community: https://www.patreon.com/myperfectconsole Be attitude for gains. https://plus.acast.com/s/my-perfect-console. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.