Sandy Petersen
Encyclopedia
Carl Sanford Joslyn Petersen (born September 16, 1955) is a game designer.
Petersen was born in St. Louis, Missouri
and attended University of California, Berkeley
, majoring in zoology
.
He is a well-known fan of H. P. Lovecraft
, whose work he first encountered in a World War II
Armed Services edition of The Dunwich Horror and other Weird Tales found in his father's library. In 1974, Dungeons & Dragons
brought his interest to role-playing game
s. His interest for role-playing games and H. P. Lovecraft were fused when he became principal author of Chaosium
's game Call of Cthulhu
, published 1981, and many scenarios and background pieces thereafter. While working for Chaosium he co-authored the second edition of RuneQuest
, for which he also co-wrote the critically acclaimed Trollpak and a number of other Glorantha
n supplements. He still plays and runs role-playing games, and is a frequent guest at conventions where he usually runs a freeform game
of his own devising, and/or helps to run someone else's game.
He worked some time for Microprose
, where he is credited for work between 1989 and 1992 on the video games Darklands
, Hyperspeed, Lightspeed, Sid Meier's Pirates!
and Sword of the Samurai. He also made minor contributions to Civilization
.
Primarily interested by the first-person shooter
Wolfenstein 3D
, Petersen joined id Software
about 10 weeks before the December 1993 release of Doom and in that time created 19 level
s for it (of which 8 were based to some extent on early drafts by Tom Hall
). He later created 17 of the levels for Doom II
, and 7 levels for Quake. His Lovecraftian influences also resulted in some changes to the monster designs for these games.
He left id Software for Ensemble Studios
in June 1997. There, he has worked as a game designer on several of their Age of Empires titles, including Rise of Rome, Age of Kings
, and The Conquerors. During this time, he was a frequent poster on the HeavenGames forums under the username ES_Sandyman. He ran an extremely popular series of threads, "Ask Sandyman", where forum members could ask him about anything they wanted (though there were some questions he did not answer).
Petersen took a professorship at The Guildhall at SMU
in 2009 following the closure of Ensemble Studios
, where he now teaches several courses on game design
.
Petersen is a Mormon
, but his religion has not prevented him from designing games involving Satanic elements. While working on Doom, he said to John Romero
: "I have no problems with the demons in the game. They're just cartoons. And, anyway, they're the bad guys." Sandy has a wife, five children, and three grandchildren.
He currently serves as the publisher of horror magazine Arcane: Penny Dreadfuls for the 21st Century.
Petersen was born in St. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis is an independent city on the eastern border of Missouri, United States. With a population of 319,294, it was the 58th-largest U.S. city at the 2010 U.S. Census. The Greater St...
and attended University of California, Berkeley
University of California, Berkeley
The University of California, Berkeley , is a teaching and research university established in 1868 and located in Berkeley, California, USA...
, majoring in zoology
Zoology
Zoology |zoölogy]]), is the branch of biology that relates to the animal kingdom, including the structure, embryology, evolution, classification, habits, and distribution of all animals, both living and extinct...
.
He is a well-known fan of H. P. Lovecraft
H. P. Lovecraft
Howard Phillips Lovecraft --often credited as H.P. Lovecraft — was an American author of horror, fantasy and science fiction, especially the subgenre known as weird fiction....
, whose work he first encountered in a World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
Armed Services edition of The Dunwich Horror and other Weird Tales found in his father's library. In 1974, Dungeons & Dragons
Dungeons & Dragons
Dungeons & Dragons is a fantasy role-playing game originally designed by Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson, and first published in 1974 by Tactical Studies Rules, Inc. . The game has been published by Wizards of the Coast since 1997...
brought his interest to role-playing game
Role-playing game
A role-playing game is a game in which players assume the roles of characters in a fictional setting. Players take responsibility for acting out these roles within a narrative, either through literal acting, or through a process of structured decision-making or character development...
s. His interest for role-playing games and H. P. Lovecraft were fused when he became principal author of Chaosium
Chaosium
Chaosium is one of the longer lived publishers of role-playing games still in existence. Founded by Greg Stafford, its first game was actually a wargame, White Bear and Red Moon, which later mutated into Dragon Pass and its sequel, Nomad Gods...
's game Call of Cthulhu
Call of Cthulhu (role-playing game)
Call of Cthulhu is a horror fiction role-playing game based on H. P. Lovecraft's story of the same name and the associated Cthulhu Mythos.The game, often abbreviated as CoC, is published by Chaosium.-Setting:...
, published 1981, and many scenarios and background pieces thereafter. While working for Chaosium he co-authored the second edition of RuneQuest
RuneQuest
RuneQuest is a fantasy role-playing game first published in 1978 by Chaosium, created by Steve Perrin and set in Greg Stafford's mythical world of Glorantha. RuneQuest was notable for its original gaming system and for its verisimilitude in adhering to an original fantasy world...
, for which he also co-wrote the critically acclaimed Trollpak and a number of other Glorantha
Glorantha
Glorantha is the Fantasy world created by Greg Stafford and since used as the background for several role-playing games, including RuneQuest , Hero Wars and HeroQuest , as well as several works of fiction and the computer strategy game King of Dragon Pass...
n supplements. He still plays and runs role-playing games, and is a frequent guest at conventions where he usually runs a freeform game
Freeform role-playing game
Freeform role-playing games, also called freeforms, are a type of role-playing game which employ minimal or no rules. Instead, actions are adjudicated on the spot by the referee. There are also several variations, some of which lack a referee....
of his own devising, and/or helps to run someone else's game.
He worked some time for Microprose
MicroProse
MicroProse was a video game publisher and developer, founded by Wild Bill Stealey and Sid Meier in 1982 as Microprose Software. In 1993, the company became a subsidiary of Spectrum HoloByte and has remained a subsidiary or brand name under several other corporations since...
, where he is credited for work between 1989 and 1992 on the video games Darklands
Darklands (computer game)
Most of the bugs in the game were correctable by subsequently released patches. Before ubiquitous Internet connectivity, such patches were typically only available through BBS downloads by modem owners and informal person-to-person copying, and thus many gamers were only able to play the...
, Hyperspeed, Lightspeed, Sid Meier's Pirates!
Sid Meier's Pirates!
Sid Meier's Pirates! is a video game created by Sid Meier and published and developed by MicroProse in 1987. It was the first game to include the name "Sid Meier" in its title as an effort by MicroProse to attract fans of Meier's earlier games, most of which were flight simulators...
and Sword of the Samurai. He also made minor contributions to Civilization
Civilization (computer game)
Sid Meier's Civilization is a turn-based strategy "4X"-type strategy video game created by Sid Meier and Bruce Shelley for MicroProse in 1991. The game's objective is to "Build an empire to stand the test of time": it begins in 4000 BC and the players attempt to expand and develop their empires...
.
Primarily interested by the first-person shooter
First-person shooter
First-person shooter is a video game genre that centers the gameplay on gun and projectile weapon-based combat through first-person perspective; i.e., the player experiences the action through the eyes of a protagonist. Generally speaking, the first-person shooter shares common traits with other...
Wolfenstein 3D
Wolfenstein 3D
Wolfenstein 3D is a video game that is generally regarded by critics and gaming journalists as having both popularized the first-person shooter genre on the PC and created the basic archetype upon which all subsequent games of the same genre would be built. It was created by id Software and...
, Petersen joined id Software
Id Software
Id Software is an American video game development company with its headquarters in Richardson, Texas. The company was founded in 1991 by four members of the computer company Softdisk: programmers John Carmack and John Romero, game designer Tom Hall, and artist Adrian Carmack...
about 10 weeks before the December 1993 release of Doom and in that time created 19 level
Level (computer and video games)
A level, map, area, or world in a video game is the total space available to the player during the course of completing a discrete objective...
s for it (of which 8 were based to some extent on early drafts by Tom Hall
Tom Hall
Tom A. Hall is a game designer born in Wisconsin. He attended the University of Wisconsin–Madison, where he received a B.S. in Computer Science. In 1987, he worked at Softdisk Inc., where he was both a programmer and the editor of Softdisk, a software bundle delivered monthly...
). He later created 17 of the levels for Doom II
Doom II
Doom II: Hell on Earth is an award winning first-person shooter video game and second title of id Software's Doom franchise. Unlike Doom which was initially only available through shareware and mail order, Doom II was a commercial release sold in stores...
, and 7 levels for Quake. His Lovecraftian influences also resulted in some changes to the monster designs for these games.
He left id Software for Ensemble Studios
Ensemble Studios
Ensemble Studios was a video game developer initially established in 1995 as an independent company, but was owned by Microsoft from 2001 to 2009, when it was officially disbanded. Ensemble developed many real-time strategy games, including the Age of Empires game series, Age of Mythology, and Halo...
in June 1997. There, he has worked as a game designer on several of their Age of Empires titles, including Rise of Rome, Age of Kings
Age of Empires II: The Age of Kings
Age of Empires II: The Age of Kings is a real-time strategy video game developed by Ensemble Studios and published by Microsoft. Released in 1999 for the Microsoft Windows and Macintosh operating systems, it was the second game in the Age of Empires series...
, and The Conquerors. During this time, he was a frequent poster on the HeavenGames forums under the username ES_Sandyman. He ran an extremely popular series of threads, "Ask Sandyman", where forum members could ask him about anything they wanted (though there were some questions he did not answer).
Petersen took a professorship at The Guildhall at SMU
The Guildhall at SMU
The Guildhall at SMU is a video game university located at the Southern Methodist University Plano campus. Students learn how to create a game, from the basics to a total conversion. Graduates present their work at a semiannual exhibition...
in 2009 following the closure of Ensemble Studios
Ensemble Studios
Ensemble Studios was a video game developer initially established in 1995 as an independent company, but was owned by Microsoft from 2001 to 2009, when it was officially disbanded. Ensemble developed many real-time strategy games, including the Age of Empires game series, Age of Mythology, and Halo...
, where he now teaches several courses on game design
Game design
Game design, a subset of game development, is the process of designing the content and rules of a game in the pre-production stage and design of gameplay, environment, storyline, and characters during production stage. The term is also used to describe both the game design embodied in a game as...
.
Petersen is a Mormon
Mormon
The term Mormon most commonly denotes an adherent, practitioner, follower, or constituent of Mormonism, which is the largest branch of the Latter Day Saint movement in restorationist Christianity...
, but his religion has not prevented him from designing games involving Satanic elements. While working on Doom, he said to John Romero
John Romero
Alfonso John Romero is a game designer, programmer, and developer in the video game industry. He is best known as a co-founder of id Software and was a designer for many of their games, including Wolfenstein 3D, Dangerous Dave, Doom and Quake...
: "I have no problems with the demons in the game. They're just cartoons. And, anyway, they're the bad guys." Sandy has a wife, five children, and three grandchildren.
He currently serves as the publisher of horror magazine Arcane: Penny Dreadfuls for the 21st Century.