QD & ME – EDUARDO SEMPE – ASSOCIATE PRODUCER

Quantic Dream: Please introduce yourself! What’s your name, where are you from, and what is your role at QD? 

Hello! My name is Eduardo Sempé, I am an Associate Producer at Quantic Dream Montreal. I am originally from Guatemala, but I have been living in Montreal for the last 14 years, after spending 4 years in Los Angeles. Despite the “chilly” weather, Montreal is a wonderful place to be. 

QD: How did you come to work in the video games industry? Was it a lifelong dream, or did you luckily stumble into it? 

Honestly, growing up I never would have imagined that I would be working in the video games industry. But I did get my start over 18 years ago thanks to my brother who was working at Electronic Arts as a programmer and encouraged me to apply there. So, I did, and soon after I started my career in games as a Quality Assurance tester. 

As I learned more about game development, I became interested in creating levels using different editors and tools and I was able to make the jump into Game and Level Design. Eventually my brother moved to Montréal, so I decided to join him as well and I applied at the same place he was and were able to work together again on Deus Ex: Human Revolution. 

Then after a few years of doing Level Design on several projects, I had the chance to take on a team lead role on Far Cry 5, which I very much enjoyed and drove me to go on the management and production path. Fast forward to today and I am now working alongside an amazing team and studio! 

QD: Let’s talk about your job at Quantic Dream! Could you elaborate more on your role, and the role of your team? 

As an Associate Producer, my role is to help the team develop a great game that they will be extremely proud of and give players the best game we can make. A lot of my work is spent scheduling and planning what everyone will be working on helping them deliver their work, solve any issues that may be blocking people and supporting the whole team as best as possible so they can focus on making a great game.   

I also work to make sure our different departments are communicating and collaborating with each other.  This means that I talk to a lot of people across the team and help organize things, so everything runs as smooth as possible. I especially enjoy this part since I get to talk to different teams that are working on cool things and see how the game starts to take shape. 

Finally, I also take part in helping people grow as developers and help them reach their personal objectives. This can be by getting trainings organized, setup up mentorships or having regular meetings to give feedback or simply talk and see how they are doing and if there is anything I can do to help. 

QD: Tell us more about the members of your team. Any fun story to share? 

The team here in Montreal is made up of a lot of different backgrounds and profiles ranging from Design, Programming, Animation, IT, etc. It’s a really great group of talented developers and I enjoy working alongside them. Everyone is very passionate about what they do, and they bring in great energy to the team.  

So far, one of the best moments happened when we were all visiting the studio in Paris. During our bus rides, Marc McGinley (Lead System Designer) started doing character voice impressions and re-enacting some scenes with each of us doing a character voice.  For me that was one of the many highlights of the trip! 

QD: Can you describe to us a typical day for you? Does a typical day even exist for you? 

A typical day for me will usually involve a lot of meetings with different teams and people.  Although my days tend to change and evolve depending on where we are on the project.  The closer we get to a milestone, the more time I spend following up with people to make sure they have what they need to complete their tasks. Once that is done, it’s mostly planning the next milestone or deliverable and making sure it fits with the planning. 

There will be days where something unexpected will come up or I am focusing on other tasks like interviewing candidates, discussing team activities or catching up with people on the team to make sure they are doing well and fulfilled with work.   

QD: What are your external inspirations that are reflected in your job? 

My biggest source of inspiration is my family.  They keep me motivated and are a big source of support. That’s something that keeps me going and gives me purpose on my day to day.  Another cool benefit is that I get to talk about video games with my son! 

I also like to draw inspiration from my previous managers and colleagues. I try to emulate the best practices they instilled in me as a developer as well as the things they did that made them a great inspiration and a good example to follow. I have been very lucky to have worked with some great leaders and managers, so I try to bring that to the way I work with the team. 

QD: Be careful, BIG question… What are your favourite games? 

I love playing all sorts of games: shooter, survival, platformer, action-adventure, some RPG’s and toss in some RTS too! But my all-time favourite game is The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past; I have played through that game so many times, yet it still brings back fond memories of playing it on my Super Nintendo as a kid.  

QD: Tell us more about your hobbies outside of work. 

I love to go mountain biking on the weekends. It’s a good workout, yet very relaxing since you get to be outside in nature. I find it’s a good way to shed some of the daily stress while enjoying the sounds of the forest. Then you get a nice rush when you come back down the mountain! 

I also enjoy cooking and baking over the weekend. I really like trying out new recipes or doing favourite family meals. My favourite though, is to make deserts, especially during the holidays where I make different types of cookies and my kids get to help decorate. I always get requests for my Toblerone shortbread cookies! 

QD: All right! What does your perfect Friday night look like? 

My perfect Friday night consists of sharing a nice meal with my family, usually take out. Spending time with my family followed by relaxing on the couch, watching a movie or tv show. It’s good way to end the week and relax before all the weekend activities.   

QD: Do you have a message for our readers? 

I can’t wait for them to see what we are working on! Everyone is hard at work building amazing things and I can’t wait to have them play and experience what the team is creating for them to enjoy! 

QD: Final question! Chocolate cake or Fruit pie? 

I love desserts so I have to say both!