In this making-of documentary Sven Sauer will illustrate the laborious process of creating the Perry Rhodan game. Locked into dark rooms filled with computers, a group of 30 enthusiastic artists and programmers has spent 14 months to design hundreds of space ships, planets, alien races and fantastic stories and baked them all into one of the most complex science fiction computer game adventures.

Our main goal was to create a modernized design for the classic Perry Rhodan series in order to approach a new target audience without alienating the traditional fan base. The original designs of planets, space ships, architecture and costumes were elaborated by a whole army of science fiction authors and coined the perceptions and expectations of the readers. We had to stay faithful to these sources while connecting them with new concepts and introducing transformations to established characters and places. It was a delicate balancing act.

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"There were some interesting gaps within the Perry universe, things that were only marginally touched by the novel authors. We tried to fill those gaps and invigorate them with our own ideas." It was a constant challenge to envision a world more than 3000 years into the future. What does exist in that time? Objects and environments need to look strange and foreign to us even though they can be traced to mundane elements of everyday life. And how can today's concepts of futuristic design be interwoven with the classical future visions of the sixties that are omnipresent in the Perry universe?

All designs relate to today's architectural principles. Familiar elements are modified but still recognizable. This enables the viewer to relate to this world, understand it and interact successfully with it.

We didn't want to stay confined to a small area like a building, a city or even one planet. While it wasn't possible to show the gargantuan size of the Perry Rhodan universe within the scope of a game we wanted to at least hint at its expanse and visit multiple planets throughout the galaxy. Following the storyline the player is confronted with 4 significantly different planets, each featuring its own history, environment and subsequently a unique design.