Jordan Mechner

Jordan Mechner
Mechner in 2017
Born (1964-06-04) June 4, 1964 (age 60)
New York City, United States
Occupations
  • Video game designer
  • graphic novelist
  • screenwriter
  • author
  • filmmaker
Notable work
Spouse
Whitney Hills
​
​
(m. 2014; div. 2017)​
[1][2]
Websitejordanmechner.com

Jordan Mechner (born June 4, 1964)[3] is an American video game designer, graphic novelist, author, screenwriter, filmmaker, and former video game programmer.[4] A major figure in the development of cinematic video games[5] and a pioneer in video game animation,[6] he began his career designing and programming the 1984 martial arts game Karateka for the Apple II while a student at Yale University. The game was a bestseller. He followed it with the platform game Prince of Persia five years later; it was widely ported and became a hit. Both games used rotoscoping, where actors shot on film by Mechner were drawn over to create in-game animation. Prince of Persia has become the basis for a long-running franchise, including a 2010 live-action film released by Walt Disney Pictures and an ongoing series of video games, published by Ubisoft.

Mechner is the recipient of many accolades, including the 2017 GDC Pioneer Award.[7] His works are often included in all-time lists of the game industry's best and most influential titles.[8][9]

In 1993, Mechner founded Smoking Car Productions to design and direct the adventure game The Last Express. While commercially unprofitable at the time of its release, the game has garnered a cult following and is recognized as an innovative work in interactive narrative.[10][11][12][13][14][15]

As an author, Mechner has written graphic novels in collaboration with different illustrators, including the New York Times bestseller Templar (2013), Monte Cristo (2022), and Liberty (2023).[16] In 2023, Mechner made his debut as a graphic novel writer–artist, with the autobiographical Replay: Memoir of an Uprooted Family. Replay was awarded the 2023 Chateau de Cheverny prize for historical graphic novels.[17]

In 2009, he was chosen by IGN as one of the top 100 game creators of all time.[18]

  1. ^ Mechner, Jordan (April 7, 2014). "Jordan Mechner on Twitter". Twitter. Archived from the original on February 1, 2015. Retrieved October 3, 2014. Tweeting from cloud nine, because I've just married @whitney.
  2. ^ "Case Summary - Online Services (Case Number: BD653303)". Los Angeles County Superior Court. Retrieved June 18, 2019.
  3. ^ Mechner, Jordan. "Blog 4 June 1989". Jordanmechner.com. Archived from the original on May 19, 2014.
  4. ^ "Jordan Mechner – Biography". jordanmechner.com. February 3, 2024.
  5. ^ "Jordan Mechner – CHM". computerhistory.org. February 3, 2024.
  6. ^ "Creating Prince of Persia in 1989 with fluid animations before the days of motion-capture – TechSpot". techspot.com. February 3, 2024.
  7. ^ "Pioneer Archive – Game Developers Choice Awards". gamechoiceawards.com. February 3, 2024.
  8. ^ "Top 20 MS-DOS Games That You Must Play – Gaming Shift". gamingshift.com. February 3, 2024.
  9. ^ "The best adventure games – PC Gamer". pcgamer.com. February 3, 2024.
  10. ^ "Top 100 All-Time Adventure Games – Adventure Gamers". adventuregamers.com. February 3, 2024.
  11. ^ "The Last Express is as mesmerising and relevant as ever, 25 years later". gameshub.com. February 3, 2024.
  12. ^ "The Last Express: Revisiting an Unsung Classic". gamedeveloper.com. February 3, 2024.
  13. ^ "Best Game Ever Set on a Train Across Europe". giantbomb.com. February 3, 2024.
  14. ^ "The Last Express, the 90s real-time adventure game that still feels groundbreaking – AUTOMATON WEST". automaton-media.com. February 3, 2024.
  15. ^ "#12: The Last Express – Adventure Gamers". adventuregamers.com. February 3, 2024.
  16. ^ "jordan mechner – Search Results". worldcat.org. February 3, 2024.
  17. ^ "Le Prix BD des Rendez-vous de l'histoire – Château de Cheverny 2023 – ActuaBD". actuabd.com. February 3, 2024.
  18. ^ "IGN – 60. Jordan Mechner". IGN. Archived from the original on April 20, 2014. Retrieved November 15, 2023.