An Interview with:
Paul Carrington BA (Director)
Vulcan Software Limited
However, one or two still remain commited to Amiga oriented production. Though new software releases (on the gaming front) have been few and far between, there are still surprises for the devoted Amigan.
One company in particular, has been hard at work producing more new material for our platform than any other. Vulcan Software, creators of the cult Valhalla series of top-down, graphic adventures, continue to shun the mainstream and write new and sometimes innovative games which run on none other but the Amiga!
In my mind, I will always thank them for producing the Amiga's first flight-simulator in ages with their excellent JetPilot. Others favour the aforementioned Valhalla, while still others fondly play TimeKeepers, Bograts and Tiny Troops.
Curious as to why any company would continue to produce new releases for a so-called "dead" platform, The Lair! sent forth an inquisitive Gerry Menzies, his mission - to break through the secure walls of Vulcan Software's estate, to penetrate their inner defences and to back their main man, Paul Carrington, into a corner from which there could be no retreat. His objective, to interrogate Mr Carrington, to learn all there is to know about Vulcan Software - their past, their present and their future!
Over to you Gerry ...
GM - Where did you get the name Vulcan?
PC - Vulcan originally was picked due to our logical hero Spock - need I say
from Star Trek, this captured our approach to the industry at the time
`Very logical and single minded' but as our company identity neared
completion we opted for the reference to the mythological God `Vulcan'
who was responsible for making jewellery for other Roman Gods. If you
look at our logo it symbolises Vulcan's hammer- head smashing the ground
creating sparks flying out in all directions.
GM - How many people work for Vulcan Software?
PC - We have 7 full time staff, over 30 freelance staff and roughly 20
external development teams.
GM - When the idea for Valhalla came up was it going to be a one off?
PC - We had never thought about a series at all, `Valhalla & the Lord of
Infinity' was purely going to be a one off, however we had no idea it
would be so successful and that the demand for more would be so high. We
then released `Valhalla Before The War' to quench the thirst and before
long were being hounded for another, along came `Valhalla & The Fortress
of Eve' and still we are being bombarded with letters and calls for
another, as such we are now working on the 4th installment to the
Valhalla saga with another 5 in the story phase.
GM - Was the idea for the speech in the game decided on at the start?
PC - Yes indeed, that was the inspiration for starting the project in the
first place as it had never been done before on the Amiga to that extent
in a floppy based adventure game.
GM - Would you do another speech game?
PC - Apart from the Valhalla series, we try and put as much speech in our
other titles as possible, mainly because it is a trade mark but also
some titles are just begging for it. With that in mind though we only
put in speech if we think it is suited for that type of game.
GM - As many companies producing software for the Amiga desert the platform
for the PC and PlayStation formats, do you see Vulcan Software following
them?
PC - As long as there are still enough dedicated Amiga users around then no,
we will not abandon this platform. Vulcan are 100% committed to
supporting the Amiga and will be here to the very end. Our long term
goal is to completely dominate the Amiga market as a localised mainstream
publisher, we believe that this is the only thing that can keep
wholesalers/retailers and Amiga users interested on a commercial level.
One thing to bare in mind on why Vulcan is still here is that we are
unique in our operations. If Vulcan where simply a developer who handed
titles to its publisher then we too would probably be looking at other,
more widespread platforms to develop for, but Vulcan in its entirety
is a developer, publisher, manufacturer, distributor and world-wide mail-order
company. All these elements combined mean that we are self
sufficient and don't rely on the normal commercial routes to sell our
products. In a sense we have written our own rules and because of this
never felt the Amiga pinch as other software houses have. There are an
awful lot of Amiga users and game players still out there around the
globe, sure the Amiga is not represented as much as it used to be (or
hardly at all) at wholesale and retail level (especially in the UK) but
this was dictated by market changes, as new Amiga hardware (in my
opinion) hit the market-place a bit too late, the damage was already
done, developers and publishers clambered for the next boom market and
left the Amiga dry. Vulcan were in a unique position of entering the
computer market at the beginning of the Amiga's decline and through sheer
stubbornness chose to adapt our operating procedures to suit. Right from
the beginning we realised there would be a niche in the market left by
the evolution and we jumped in it as quick as we could and sealed the
entrance tight. It was a struggle at first and quite frightening the day
we decided to withdraw all our titles from mainstream wholesale and
distribution but we held on and we are now proud to say we are the
biggest publisher/developer for the Amiga market. In a nutshell there
is no reason for us to leave the Amiga platform as long as we control
70% or more of the Amiga's future software then we will always be in a
position to support it for as long as the loyal users dictate. In
essence it's a lovely balance and pervertedly a good thing for the
Amiga's future as localisation of Amiga software breathes a new dimension
into the overall picture.
GM - Do you think that magazine reviews make a difference to the volume of sales of a
game? That is, if one of your games receives 85% and
another 65% is there an obvious difference in sales?
PC - No, from my experience magazine scores make no difference at all to
sales, perhaps if there was more faith in the scorer's ability then it
might, but review scores are ultimately one person's personal opinion and
definitely not the end of the story... for example, our first Valhalla
title received 19% from "Amiga Power" and 94% from other magazines... work
that one out? Valhalla went on to being a huge success and actually
survived longer than "Amiga Power".
[May she Rest In Peace - Ed]
GM - By releasing demo's freely on the Internet has this increased the number
of sales of a game?
PC - I believe demo's are the only thing that makes people buy games, so many
times people have bought a game and thought... "Aaaargh!!!!!" If they had
had the chance to see the title first then this would never happen, as
with many things... if you want a car you test drive it, if you want a
record you listen to it first, if you want a jumper, you try it on, as
with games you should always have the chance to try a demo.
GM - Do you feel that magazines which give whole games away compared to demo's
are effecting the sales of software in a negative way?
PC - No, as 9 times out of 10 the games they give away would not have done
very well at a commercial level, (hence, that's why they are given away)
and therefore would not have damaged sales. With that in mind however
there was one full (car racing) game on a magazine cover-mount recently
that really made me sit up and think but I put that down to the fault of
the developer who should have researched his market more thoroughly and
to see that there is still a lot of money to be made from commercially
released titles.
GM - What are your feelings about computer piracy, do you think it is the
major killer of the Amiga games-market as some suggest, or a problem but
not the real cause of companies moving to the PC and PlayStation formats
where piracy is also wide spread?
[Although these companies all claim differently! - Ed]
PC - Piracy is rife on all mediums, whether that's Amiga, PC, PlayStation,
videos, music, tee-shirts, insurance policies, id cards etc...
Piracy does not kill a platform as long as it is only a proportion of
the platform, if say 20% of the Amiga market was pirate users then the
other 80% of honest buyers is enough to ensure that developers and publishers
stay around, however if the market decreases and the honest users leave
to other platforms then all you're left with is pirates... not a good
thing at all ...
The crackers/hackers themselves should not be to blame as they have no
intention of ever purchasing a title anyway and have no respect of any
kind for the hard working individuals developing the software so it's
best to forget them completely as they are not even worth wasting
discussion on, the real problems come for the users of pirated software,
it is so easy to say "Hey, I have this cracked game and it's free!",
chuckle, chuckle... but it could be worth baring in mind that without
supporting the publishers and developers then that might also be the
last free game they will ever have.
[A valid and considered argument! Trouble is, these mentally deficient individuals
can't be reasoned with. - Ed]
GM - Do you receive game ideas from the general public?
PC - All the time yes. Game ideas are plentiful and rife but unfortunately we
don't have the time to act on all suggestions from the public but it is
nice to hear what people would like to play and many of their ideas are
taken on board in general terms.
GM - What new projects has Vulcan Software got in the pipeline?
PC -
| Current Catalogue | Future Catalogue |
|---|---|
 Valhalla & The Lord Of Infinity |  Breed2000 |
| Valhalla - Before The War | Five Aside Football |
| Valhalla & The Fortress Of Eve | Five Aside Football, AGA |
| TimeKeepers | Pinball Brain Damage, AGA |
| TimeKeepers, Expansion Disk | Wasted Dreams |
| Hillsea Lido | JetPilot, Expansion Disk (3D Landscape) |
| Bograts, AGA | Cold Blood, AGA |
| JetPilot | Uropa2 |
| Burnout, AGA | Hell Pigs |
| Tiny Troops | Strangers, AGA |
| Burnout, Expansion Disk (4 Additional Cars) |
|
| Ultra Violent Worlds, AGA |
|
| Genetic Species |
|
| Hell Pigs, CD version |
|
| The Enforcer |
|
| Valhalla IV |
|
| Alien Olympics |
Well that's it. I would like to say a big "thank you" to Paul Carrington of Vulcan Software Limited for taking the time to answer my questions and for putting up with my e-mails asking if it was possible for him to return them in time for The Lair! II.
Without such people being so dedicated to the Amiga we would not have a machine worth using. You can contact Vulcan Software at their web site, where you can down-load demo's of all their releases.