| Douglas Goodall | |
|---|---|
| Role(s) | Designer, writer |
| Years active | 2001—2009 |
| Alias(es) | affamu (and variations)[1] |
| Game credits | The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind[2] |
Douglas Goodall is a designer and writer who worked on Morrowind.[2]
The Elder ScrollsEdit
Goodall joined Bethesda Softworks in January 2001[3][4] as a Junior Assistant Designer.[5] At the time of joining, Goodall's favorite video games were Arena and Daggerfall[6] and he was a regular of the alt.games.daggerfall newsgroup.[1] Goodall's work on Morrowind initially involved doing interiors in Ald'ruhn with Mark Nelson before moving on to quest design,[3] designing quests for most of the game's playable factions[3] based on outlines by Lead Designer Ken Rolston.[7] While he was initially tasked to write for the Imperial Cult faction, for which he solicited help from the Elder Scrolls forums,[8] he felt it would be better saved for an expansion (Rolston would write the Imperial Cult quests instead).[3] Shortly after Morrowind's release, Project Leader Todd Howard tasked Goodall and Nelson to devise ideas for the game's expansions, with Goodall pitching an idea for Tribunal (though he noted the final product was different from his concept).[1]
Goodall left Bethesda Softworks in June 2002.[3] According to Mark Nelson, Goodall resigned immediately after storming out of an early design meeting for Tribunal in which he and Rolston had had a heated argument.[7] In 2005, Goodall reflected that he blamed himself for the unhappiness and friction he experienced during his time at Bethesda Softworks.[3]
During and after Morrowind's development, Goodall frequently posted to the Elder Scrolls forums, sometimes in-character as the Morrowind character Jobasha.[9] He has written several lore texts which were posted online but not featured in-game.[10]
In 2023, Goodall began publishing plug-ins for Morrowind, including AFFresh which included a number of original lore texts.[11]
Outside of The Elder ScrollsEdit
Goodall was born in Tennessee and lived in Raleigh, North Carolina before moving to Frederick, Maryland for his job at Bethesda Softworks.[12] He stated that he had played both pen-and-paper RPGs and CRPGs since he was seven years old.[6] Prior to his tenure at Bethesda, he worked as a programmer on a number of video games which were not released,[13] including a "joust-like" game for the Apple II and a "half-written MUD server",[6] and his experiences in game development soured him on the industry.[3] After leaving video games, he started an IT support business, before a listing for Bethesda Softworks enticed him to return to game development.[3]
After leaving Bethesda Softworks, Goodall returned to Raleigh and resumed working in IT support.[3]
Texts authoredEdit
This list is non-exhaustive and includes only texts of which Goodall is known to be a primary author.
Morrowind
- Arkay the Enemy[1]
- Corpse Preparation[1]
- Hanging Gardens of Wasten Coridale[1]
- Mixed Unit Tactics[1]
- Words of Clan Mother Ahnissi[14]
The Elder Scrolls: Online
Out-of-game
- The Dreadful Theft of the Sun's Dusk Ale
- Interview with Douglas Goodall[15]
- Interview With Three Booksellers (with additions from Todd Howard and Ken Rolston)[16]
- Minutes of the Lusty Argonian Historical Society
- Sermon Zero of the Thirty-and-Six-and-Nine Sermons of Vivec
- The Soft Doctrines of Magnus Invisible
- The Soft Doctrines of Magnus Invisible, revised
- Sweet Shadows of the Moons
- Ta'Agra Phrases and Expressions
- Wulfric and the Snow Elf
AFFresh
- ^ This is an edited excerpt from Goodall's out-of-game text The Dreadful Theft of the Sun's Dusk Ale.
CreditsEdit
| Indicates The Elder Scrolls titles |
Video gamesEdit
| Year | Title | Credit(s) | Studio |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 | The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind | Writing & Quest Design[2] | Bethesda Softworks |
| 2009 | Fallen Earth | Game Scripter Game Designer[17] |
Icarus Studios |
See AlsoEdit
External LinksEdit
ReferencesEdit
- ^ a b c d e f g Douglas Goodall's Posts
- ^ a b c Morrowind:Credits
- ^ a b c d e f g h i Douglas Goodall Interview
- ^ Goodall, D. [affamu]. (12 January 2001). Comment on "Programmer's life". The Essential Site Storyboard. Archived from the original on 25 January 2001.
- ^ Goodall, D. [affamu]. (19 February 2001). Comment on "Khajiit Federation?". 'The Elder Scrolls Forums. Archived from the original on 5 March 2001.
- ^ a b c Keefer, J. (22 October 2001). Morrowind Developer Profiles. GameSpy. Archived from the original on 9 November 2001.
- ^ a b Kane, A. (27 March 2019). Morrowind: An oral history. Polygon.
- ^ Goodall, D. [affamu]. (03/23/2001). "Your Turn To Contribute (quests, that is)". The Elder Scrolls Forums. Archived from the original on 17 April 2001.
- ^ Douglas Goodall's Posts — The Imperial Library
- ^ Douglas Goodall's Texts — The Imperial Library
- ^ Morrowind Mod:AFFresh
- ^ Goodall, D. [AFFA MU]. (9 February 2001). Comment on "Roll call". The Essential Site Storyboard. Archived from the original on 16 February 2001.
- ^ Goodall, D. [affamu]. (15 February 2001). Comment on "Devs: What else have you made?". The Elder Scrolls Forums. Archived from the original on 5 March 2001.
- ^ Who Did What?, The Imperial Library
- ^ Interview With Douglas Goodall
- ^ Intervie With Three Booksellers
- ^ Fallen Earth (Windows, 2009) credits. MobyGames.