I tend to get inspired by real life locations, things I see on TV/films and photographs. A lot of my tracks tend to be real-world in style which means I'm always trying to add little details to help make things look more realistic.
Who are your favorite creators and creations? (Tracks, Mods, Karts)
prob_alex and Laidbackcat are not only great creators, but have become very good friends as well. prob_alex in particular has pretty much become a sculptor on this game, some of his creations are nothing short of artistic masterpieces, the way he uses the bog-standard rocks and blocks to create dinosaurs, whales and giant warships is nothing short of mindblowing. If you ever need reminding of the true artistic potential of this game just take a drive on one of his tracks, you'll soon be bursting with inspiration! I also really like manlius10a 's tracks, they are always fun to race and look wonderful too. Same goes for IndustrialSavior, the guy has been a huge contributor to the track scene since the beginning and I even heard someone refer to him as "the master" in the modspot the other day! High praise indeed... As for tracks, I have many favorites, but a few that are absolutely brilliant are Warp Drive - Laidbackcat, Battle At Port Duisburg - prob_alex, Sacred Grove - manlius10a, Kamikaze Skyline Kowloon - IndustrialSavior and an all-time classic, Sewer Surfin' - Barberian912.
What are your favorite creations? (Tracks, Mods, Karts)
If I could only pick 5 then Miami Nice?, JebediahCity, TajMirage. Rio De Janeiro and Suburban Sprawl.
What is your creating process strong point?
I'm very good at v isualising my tracks beforehand. I'll draw a rough doodle on paper beforehand, then create the track roughly in the editor and edit the different sections as I go along. I try to make each section of the track different from the last to help with familiarisation and to try and make it memorable to the racer. I'd say 9 times out of 10 my tracks turn out pretty much how I envision them at the start.
What have you learned most from other creators?
How versatile the seemingly meagre selection of props can be. Seeing some of puppethand666's early levels (as well as IvoYaridovich and IndustrialSavior) opened up the possibilities of how to use mundane objects like containers and blocks to actually become a part of the track, rather than just scenery. I took this on myself by using t hings like the semi trucks and the marina parts to create drivable rooftop sections on some of my city tracks. Also, especially with the angled props, the creative possibilities with the rocks and blocks are practically endless, so long as you can tame the dreaded pop-up...
What advice would you give to newer ModNationcreators?
Start off simple and learn the tools, you aren't going to be able to master the intricacies of the editor right away, so start with something simple but fun and try and spend a bit of time on the decoration to make it stand out from other tracks out there. If you can make a track with a certain theme then even better. Don't try and make something too complicated early on, as chances are you won't have mastered things like the advanced road editor or reset zones sufficiently enough to allow your ideas to play our smoothly. Also, get involved with the community, participate in the forums and post up your newest tracks, us regular Modnation Racers al ways LOVE to see what you've come up with!
Other Interests?
I'm a keen photographer (I spend a while getting that 'perfect' thumbnail image, lol) filmmaker and music creator (I'm looking forward to getting to grips with the music sequencer in LBP2 soon).
Acceleration or Speed? / Drift or Handling?
I tend to race with speed +1 and drift/handling at default. I'm a pretty good racer when I want to be but I struggle to catch up with the regular hotlap champions, I don't know what they put in their gas tank, but it sure isn't regular gasoline!
Hot Wheels or Matchbox?
Matchbox! When I was just a little kid my dad used to take me to town every weekend and buy me one die-cast Matchbox car, I always loved how they were the sort of cars I'd see driving around on the roads outside. I have over 500 of the things sat in boxes up in my attic these days, might be worth a few bob I reckon!
What type of tracks do you like to race? (scenic, drift, fast, silly, race-oriented, etc)
I love sce nic tracks, something that feels like it was created for a real-world type racing game (such as Need For Speed) is particularly appealing. I also like tracks that have a large set-piece (like a giant dinosaur) or tracks that allow a great deal of drifting. I don't particularly like tracks with too many jumps, they just get boring because you're severely limited what you can do whilst in the air! I also don't like tracks with lots of random elevation changes and awkward banking, they just make me feel dizzy!
Do you "see" track ideas when you travel?
Sometimes, although mainly my track ideas are derived from places I've never been. However, one track of mine, "Dragon Valley" is based on the area where I live in South Wales, I drive underneath that large viaduct everyday when I go to work!
Biff or Gary?
Biff, he's hilariously mean, but I love the banter between the pair of them, it often makes me laugh, even now.
What is your favorite creation theme and why?
A lot of my tracks tend to be based on the seaside theme, because I love having that wide open water and the ground sprays (tarmac, light gravel) are ideal for creating urban environments. Unfortunately I also find that this theme uses up the most track budget so if possible I use Alpine instead as this allows me to use many more unique props before hitting the prop limit.
What is your favorite UFG track and why?
Probably Boardwalk, it has a great combination of urban and rural driving with some great drifting opportunities and a killer (literally) hairpin turn!
What is your TOP TIP in your chosen field of creation? (mod/kart/track)
Take you time, make each and every track you publish uniquely yours, anyone can knock up a loop and use auto-populate to create a track within minutes, but that won't get you very far these days. Some of the great track creators on the game have adopted a style all of their own, so much so that you can tell whose track it just by playing it once. If you can regularly make tracks that stand out from the crowd and introduce something new or interesting to the mix then you can proudly take your place amongst the elite creators on the game.
Favorite weapon?
I have a real love/hate relationship with the Level 3 Lightning Storm! It's great when I've got it and I'm trailing the competition but when I'm out in front and one is let off, I use up 100% of my shield and THEN it hits me... lets just say I'm not amused, okay?
Favorite race type (action / pure / time trial/ online)
I mainly play in online casual racerooms as this gives me an opportunity to check out all the new community made tracks as well as race with my friends. I have to say that MNR is really a unique game in respects to the community aspect. Before I got it I had only a handful of friends on PSN but since MNR I've met so many people from all over the world, most of which have mics so we can chat to one another while we race. There's really no other game that allows people to just get together and shoot the breeze like this, it's a brilliant social game and I know a few people who bought a PS3 just to play MNR
moriarty1975 wrote:
jedicam10 wrote:So jealous you get a player profile...I need to work more to get up there with prob_alex and you ateist. But great job at being talented enough to have a player profile made for you.
Hmm...this isn't modnation monday 
I love this. Insight on one of the great creators of the game. This kind of info could be really beneficial. Looking forward to more profiles.
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