Adam Heine

Adam Heine

Last Wednesday was Adam Heine's last day here at Black Isle Studios.Often times when people turn in their two weeks in this industry, it's because the grass on the other side in question conjures up perceived opportunity, the promise of more creative freedom, ego stroking, and/or the almighty extra buck or two.In Adam's case, however, his departure from our halls had nothing to do with "the usual", for he absolutely loved his job here at Black Isle (or at least, that's what he TOLD us).Rather, Adam left so that he could commit more time to his friends, family, and wonderful new wife Cindy.Adam had been commuting from San Diego to Irvine on a daily basis for almost a year and a half, and it occurred to him that he was losing two hours of life on the road.Both his tenacity in dealing with that commute and his subsequent recent decision to leave something he truly enjoys to be closer to the people he loves paint the clearest picture of what it was like to work with this man.He is one of the most remarkable people I've ever met, and I know that I speak on behalf of everyone that has worked with Adam here at Black Isle when I say that he will be truly missed and never properly replaced.

Adam loves games, and he injected his passionate enthusiasm for them into the recent Black Isle releases.He, like many of us, devoted (and still devotes) a large portion of his free time to the fantastic world of electronic escapism.His favorites were the excellent adventure games of LucasArts (along with strong interest in all things console) and it delighted Adam that he could work for a development team that also enjoyed focusing a large portion of design on storytelling.He graduated from the University of California at San Diego in 1999 with a degree in Computer Science, while then serving as an intern for Team Torment, and quickly demonstrated that not only was he a formidable programmer in his own right, but that he had ideas flowing out of his mind from a lifetime spent enjoying those of others.Working with Adam quickly changed your mindset from "This is probably impossible considering our current limitations" to "I bet Adam can figure out a way to do this" (and if he couldn't, he almost always had an alternative design and implementation that made you forget about your own silly idea anyhow!) In fact, because of Adam, lim-lims became pets, cutscenes executed with fantastic character, the Brothel teemed with interaction rather than people just standing around, Carceri's chaos kept the player on their toes at all times, and ... Over the course of 2000, Adam has served more a designer for our new project, rapidly belting one clever idea after another.

We are an industry of kids who refused to grow up, and there are times when because of that, it's seemingly impossible for any of us to act "professionally".It's not uncommon to feel beaten down by the silly cynicism, ego, and pettiness that is exhibited by some individuals on a regular basis.Adam came and showed us how EVERYONE should approach this industry, and he has left an undeniable mark upon everything we do.I can only hope that life one day allows Adam to balance his personal and professional time in such a manner that it reopens the door to our industry, because losing him isn't just a detriment to Black Isle Studios, it's a loss to the entire gaming community.You are an amazing guy Adam, and we are all better people for having worked with you.

08.18.00 - Adam Heine - A Black Isle goodbye to Adam... 07.07.00 - E3 photos - Pictures don't lie.We've got skills. 07.06.00 - E3 2000 news - A look at what was hot.

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Rather, Adam left so that he could commit more time to his friends, family, and wonderful new wife Cindy.Adam had been commuting from San Diego to Irvine on a daily basis for almost a year and a half, and it occurred to him that he was losing two hours of life on the road.Both his tenacity in dealing with that commute and his subsequent recent decision to leave something he truly enjoys to be closer to the people he loves paint the clearest picture of what it was like to work with this man.He is one of the most remarkable people I've ever met, and I know that I speak on behalf of everyone that has worked with Adam here at Black Isle when I say that he will be truly missed and never properly replaced.

Adam loves games, and he injected his passionate enthusiasm for them into the recent Black Isle releases.He, like many of us, devoted (and still devotes) a large portion of his free time to the fantastic world of electronic escapism.His favorites were the excellent adventure games of LucasArts (along with strong interest in all things console) and it delighted Adam that he could work for a development team that also enjoyed focusing a large portion of design on storytelling.He graduated from the University of California at San Diego in 1999 with a degree in Computer Science, while then serving as an intern for Team Torment, and quickly demonstrated that not only was he a formidable programmer in his own right, but that he had ideas flowing out of his mind from a lifetime spent enjoying those of others.Working with Adam quickly changed your mindset from "This is probably impossible considering our current limitations" to "I bet Adam can figure out a way to do this" (and if he couldn't, he almost always had an alternative design and implementation that made you forget about your own silly idea anyhow!) In fact, because of Adam, lim-lims became pets, cutscenes executed with fantastic character, the Brothel teemed with interaction rather than people just standing around, Carceri's chaos kept the player on their toes at all times, and… you get the idea.Over the course of 2000, Adam has served more a designer for our new project, rapidly belting one clever idea after another.

We are an industry of kids who refused to grow up, and there are times when because of that, it's seemingly impossible for any of us to act "professionally".It's not uncommon to feel beaten down by the silly cynicism, ego, and pettiness that is exhibited by some individuals on a regular basis.Adam came and showed us how EVERYONE should approach this industry, and he has left an undeniable mark upon everything we do.I can only hope that life one day allows Adam to balance his personal and professional time in such a manner that it reopens the door to our industry, because losing him isn't just a detriment to Black Isle Studios, it's a loss to the entire gaming community.You are an amazing guy Adam, and we are all better people for having worked with you.

Sincerely,

Scott Warner, Designer, Black Isle Studios

Adam Heine

Last Wednesday was Adam Heine's last day here at Black Isle Studios.Often times when people turn in their two weeks in this industry, it's because the grass on the other side in question conjures up perceived opportunity, the promise of more creative freedom, ego stroking, and/or the almighty extra buck or two.In Adam's case, however, his departure from our halls had nothing to do with "the usual", for he absolutely loved his job here at Black Isle (or at least, that's what he TOLD us).Rather, Adam left so that he could commit more time to his friends, family, and wonderful new wife Cindy.Adam had been commuting from San Diego to Irvine on a daily basis for almost a year and a half, and it occurred to him that he was losing two hours of life on the road.Both his tenacity in dealing with that commute and his subsequent recent decision to leave something he truly enjoys to be closer to the people he loves paint the clearest picture of what it was like to work with this man.He is one of the most remarkable people I've ever met, and I know that I speak on behalf of everyone that has worked with Adam here at Black Isle when I say that he will be truly missed and never properly replaced.

Adam loves games, and he injected his passionate enthusiasm for them into the recent Black Isle releases.He, like many of us, devoted (and still devotes) a large portion of his free time to the fantastic world of electronic escapism.His favorites were the excellent adventure games of LucasArts (along with strong interest in all things console) and it delighted Adam that he could work for a development team that also enjoyed focusing a large portion of design on storytelling.He graduated from the University of California at San Diego in 1999 with a degree in Computer Science, while then serving as an intern for Team Torment, and quickly demonstrated that not only was he a formidable programmer in his own right, but that he had ideas flowing out of his mind from a lifetime spent enjoying those of others.Working with Adam quickly changed your mindset from "This is probably impossible considering our current limitations" to "I bet Adam can figure out a way to do this" (and if he couldn't, he almost always had an alternative design and implementation that made you forget about your own silly idea anyhow!) In fact, because of Adam, lim-lims became pets, cutscenes executed with fantastic character, the Brothel teemed with interaction rather than people just standing around, Carceri's chaos kept the player on their toes at all times, and… you get the idea.Over the course of 2000, Adam has served more a designer for our new project, rapidly belting one clever idea after another.

We are an industry of kids who refused to grow up, and there are times when because of that, it's seemingly impossible for any of us to act "professionally".It's not uncommon to feel beaten down by the silly cynicism, ego, and pettiness that is exhibited by some individuals on a regular basis.Adam came and showed us how EVERYONE should approach this industry, and he has left an undeniable mark upon everything we do.I can only hope that life one day allows Adam to balance his personal and professional time in such a manner that it reopens the door to our industry, because losing him isn't just a detriment to Black Isle Studios, it's a loss to the entire gaming community.You are an amazing guy Adam, and we are all better people for having worked with you.

Sincerely,

It focuses on the recent departure of Adam Heine and how his presence and contributions will be missed:

Adam Heine

Last Wednesday was Adam Heine's last day here at Black Isle Studios.Often times when people turn in their two weeks in this industry, it's because the grass on the other side in question conjures up perceived opportunity, the promise of more creative freedom, ego stroking, and/or the almighty extra buck or two.In Adam's case, however, his departure from our halls had nothing to do with "the usual", for he absolutely loved his job here at Black Isle (or at least, that's what he TOLD us).Rather, Adam left so that he could commit more time to his friends, family, and wonderful new wife Cindy.Adam had been commuting from San Diego to Irvine on a daily basis for almost a year and a half, and it occurred to him that he was losing two hours of life on the road.Both his tenacity in dealing with that commute and his subsequent recent decision to leave something he truly enjoys to be closer to the people he loves paint the clearest picture of what it was like to work with this man.He is one of the most remarkable people I've ever met, and I know that I speak on behalf of everyone that has worked with Adam here at Black Isle when I say that he will be truly missed and never properly replaced.

Adam loves games, and he injected his passionate enthusiasm for them into the recent Black Isle releases.He, like many of us, devoted (and still devotes) a large portion of his free time to the fantastic world of electronic escapism.His favorites were the excellent adventure games of LucasArts (along with strong interest in all things console) and it delighted Adam that he could work for a development team that also enjoyed focusing a large portion of design on storytelling.He graduated from the University of California at San Diego in 1999 with a degree in Computer Science, while then serving as an intern for Team Torment, and quickly demonstrated that not only was he a formidable programmer in his own right, but that he had ideas flowing out of his mind from a lifetime spent enjoying those of others.Working with Adam quickly changed your mindset from "This is probably impossible considering our current limitations" to "I bet Adam can figure out a way to do this" (and if he couldn't, he almost always had an alternative design and implementation that made you forget about your own silly idea anyhow!) In fact, because of Adam, lim-lims became pets, cutscenes executed with fantastic character, the Brothel teemed with interaction rather than people just standing around, Carceri's chaos kept the player on their toes at all times, and… you get the idea.Over the course of 2000, Adam has served more a designer for our new project, rapidly belting one clever idea after another (prompting lead designer Dave Maldonado to write "Adam Heine's Black Isle Project!
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Adam came and showed us how EVERYONE should approach this industry, and he has left an undeniable mark upon everything we do.I can only hope that life one day allows Adam to balance his personal and professional time in such a manner that it reopens the door to our industry, because losing him isn't just a detriment to Black Isle Studios, it's a loss to the entire gaming community.You are an amazing guy Adam, and we are all better people for having worked with you.
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We certainly hope that Adam Heine, whose past contributions include entries in the Designer notes itself, has a glorious future ahead.Considering the mark he left at Black Isle, we have no doubt that this will be the case.