#137 - Eric Kozlowsky Interview (Tropical Freeze, Retro Studios, Art, Metroid Dread, Graphics, Layoffs etc.)

Eric Kozlowsky is an artist who has worked at multiple game studios and is most well known for his short but important tenure at Retro Studios on Donkey Kong Country Tropical Freeze. He is currently Art Director at Fuzzybot.   SOCIAL MEDIA TWITTER -@vonkoz INSTAGRAM - @von_koz ARTSTATION - https://www.artstation.com/vonkoz WEBSITE - https://www.landofkoz.com/   #tropicalfreeze #nintendo #retrostudios   TIMESTAMPS 00:00 - Intro 01:00 - Deadlines/Crunch 03:30 - Early Days At Retro Studios 06:00 - Working On Mangroves For Tropical Freeze 07:40 - Intimidation Factor/Camaraderie At Retro 09:20 - Eric’s Collaboration With Ted Anderson On Donkey Kong Country Tropical Freeze 12:31 - Eric’s Work On Windmill Hills 14:55 - Working On Rodent Ruckus 15:46 - Crunch At The End Of Tropical Freeze/Meltdown Mayhem/Destructive Terrain 17:29 - Working With Tanabe 19:40 - Tropical Freeze Levels Being Worked On Out Of Sync/Creating & Working With A Kit 23:59 - Learning From Your Peers/Nintendo Doesn’t Let You Share RAW Files 27:00 - Why Eric Left Retro Studios 29:10 - Eric Is Gutted He Isn’t Working On Metroid Prime 4/Eric Wasn’t A DK Fan Until Working On Tropical Freeze 30:40 - Eric’s Thoughts On Metroid Dread/Super Metroid 33:40 - Pacing In Games/Artist’s Should Understand Basic Design 34:40 - Layoffs In The Industry/Why Eric Moved From Studio To Studio 38:18 - Fans Starting False Rumours When Eric Started At Retro/Being Adaptable 39:30 - Retro Studios Staff Laughing At Stupid Rumours/Wrong Expectations Affected Tropical Freeze 40:30 - Differences Between Stylised & Realistic Graphics 45:00 - Eric Struggles To Stay Up With With Technology/Tunic/Having A Critical Eye 46:50 - Eric Tries To Be Broader Than Just Games/Looking At The Source 48:54 - Catch The Essence But Not Have Direct Influences/Link’s Awakening Rip Off Indie Game 50:40 - Trying To Stay Up With Artists He Mentors/Some Artists Shouldn’t Be Directors 52:40 - Keep Your Skills Sharp As An Artist/Having Tunnel Vision With Art Sometimes 55:00 - Where To Follow Eric Kozlowsky 55:57 - Eric’s Book Arma