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Ever wish that you could make a Mario game just the way that you want it? No... I'm not talking about Rom hacking, I'm talking about actually making one. Well, the SMBHQ productions is on the job. The SMBHQ Productions staff is made up of a few music, graphics, sound effects, and designers as well as people who do the artwork.

SMBHQ Productions is all about Fan Made, Mario games. We are a non-profit organization and all of our games are freeware. We do have deadlines and sometimes work on two or more games at a time, depending on what kind of ideas we have. Each department has a department chairman, or "Head" of that department. When working on a game, the department chairman will be in a meeting, sometimes via the Yahoo Group posts or the actual chat, with the producer, exec. producer, and director. Each chairman will have to show the work that the department has worked on. For example, the music department will send use a midi file showing the song(s) they have composed so far. The programming department will show what they have so far for the game. The graphics will show what kind of graphics they have chosen for the game. Finally, the art department will show the artwork they have been working on for the game, like the opening pictures, box art, etc. We try to make it so it's almost like a real gaming company, however we're not pressed for time and budget issues.

Each department is required to do and some guide lines on what you actually do.

• Music Department - The Music Department is basically where you make your music. If you have a keyboard that hooks up to a computer and you can record to a software, like Cubase or Cakewalk, that is a major plus. If the only type of music you can make is either on a piano (and it records to a floppy disk) or via using your mouse to select the notes, that's fine too. But this is for people who make music. Music department is also required to find sound effects.
• Graphics Department - This is the department that will make the pictures for the game. Whether it be a walking Mario, jumping Luigi, etc., these will be the graphics that the programmers will add in last.
• Programming Department - These are the guys who are responsible for making the game run. They will do all the programming. When testing a level w/o the graphics for the graphics department, the programmers use stuff like a red ball for the main character, or skulls for doors. They don't even have to be animated, but they have to look for the levels and the character movements and all. This is the toughest section, but once you read over the help files and get the hang of it, it's really a breeze.
• Art Department - These are the people who go through a lot of pens, pencils, paper, and time. Whether it be using paper and a scanner, or something like Adobe Illustrator, the art is only used for stuff like box arts, artwork, promotional, etc.
• Testing Department - These guys only come into play when the game is near completion. This might seem like an easy job, but it's not. You really have to be a very good nitpicker to be in the testing department. These guys will play the game hours on end looking at stuff that the programmers, artists, graphics, and/or musicians missed. Without these people, a gaming company would be sunk.
• Translating Department (Pending)- Once the English version of the game comes out, these guys, if there is any text involved, will have to go through and translate the games from English to French, Spanish, and any other languages we can think of that might play these games.

The Game Engine
The game engine that SMBHQ Productions currently uses is called The Games Factory. Although sometimes looked down upon for its tight limitations and shoddy results (know the infamous "Paper Mario World"?), this program can work miracles if it is used right. Its capabilites range to RPGs, puzzles, platformers, racing, adventures, and much more. When you join SMBHQ Productions we'll supply you with the PRO version access code so you can start right away.