TGR: You mentioned Diablo. Too Human is kind of a similar vein to that. People like to make that connection.

DENIS: As to substance, yes for sure, it has some similarities. The only concern I have with the perception is that people need to understand that the game play in Too Human is fundamentally different. With Diablo, you will go after a mob and just wear it down. If you get the best loot, you should win. In Too Human, that is not the case. You need to know how to take out the shields - if you should take the missile guy first, the troll, or the leader. If you do not do that, you are going to die an awful lot. And that is the fundamental difference. That is the only concern that I have. I think Diablo is great.

TGR: What have you thought of Diablo 3 so far?

DENIS: It looks interesting, but too early to tell. You cannot judge games by video, as an interactive medium. You cannot really judge a game by a non-interactive video or whatever it is going to be. I will look forward to it when it comes out, whenever that is.

TGR: What have you thought of this year’s E3?

DENIS: I think this year’s E3 is becoming more like Hollywood, insofar as it is a state of mind, rather than a real place. People come to Los Angeles expecting to see Hollywood and realize that it does not really exist; that it is just all in advertising, promotion, and press. I do not see that as a bad thing necessarily; I just think it has changed fundamentally from what it used to be in 2006 and the earlier years. There used to be an insane amount of games everywhere.

TGR: Would you rather have 2006 E3 or 2008 E3? What do feel is best for the industry

DENIS: I think this has definitely been better for the industry, simply because the amount of cost that were sunk into 2006 was not supportable. It could not have continued much longer. It was funny, because I remember 2005 and 2006. I used to wonder why we were doing it. Delaying games for two quarters, to do the demos in order to get best in the show for E3, did not really mean that much. Then suddenly, it crashed, like the Berlin Wall falling in 2006.

I do not really understand at some level why all of the games need to be shown at once. I would rather see it more like press junkets when stuff comes out and you have a rotation, with the same for press coverage, in a really thorough and critical way. I think this is better, because it is smaller.

TGR: What is it like having a studio in St. Catharine’s in Niagara?

DENIS: I am a big believer in Niagara, period. It is not necessarily Niagara Falls, but we say “Niagara, Home of Silicon Knights,” referring to the whole Niagara region. The fact that we are within an hour of 13 universities (Canada’s best natural resource), gives us a lot of very smart, academically-inclined people. The university, school, and medical system are all awesome. I think it is the best place to be. It has some of the best talent in the world; I could not imagine being anywhere else.

I know there is a perception of being on the West Coast, and I understand it is beautiful - it is really nice; we went to a party on Pacific Coast Highway just a while ago. But when it comes down to working and making video games, you can pretty much do it anywhere you want. It is not all about being in a nice location. St. Catharine’s is beautiful and fantastic, but we are in a spot because it is where we want to be. We have been incorporated since 1992, so we have been around for a while. I just cannot think of a better place to be.

TGR: How about St. Thomas in the Caribbean?

DENIS: It would be nice to visit for a vacation, but I do not think any work would get done there (due to the weather). Niagara is a great place. All of the universities and colleges are just awesome.

TGR: There is a lot of talent there.

DENIS: Tons of talent.

TGR: Is that where most of the staff has come from; locally, around Ontario?

DENIS: Yes, around 95%.

TGR: Interesting.

DENIS: We have a very different philosophy; we generally do not recruit within the video game industry at all actually. We just look for talented people.

TGR: That is kind of like BioWare.

DENIS: Yes, that is what it is all about; it is all about people. I am a big believer in Peter Drucker and knowledge-based companies – that people are everything. It is all about ideas and creating intellectual property. That is what it is going to be in the foreseeable future.

TGR: What is the interaction like with the city, the management of St. Catharine’s, the mayor, and the city in general? Have they been supportive of you?

DENIS: Very supportive. I think the Ontario Government has been very supportive as well. Now we just have to get the Federal Government on board. But in general, it has been fantastic; everyone has been very supportive.

TGR: That is great. So what are the plans for the future, as a development studio?

DENIS: There will be plans; however, exactly when, remains to be seen.

TGR: Okay. Thanks very much for your time.