Ragnar Tørnquist
Encyclopedia
Ragnar Tørnquist is a Norwegian
game designer and author
. He works for Funcom
in Oslo
.
at St Clare's
, Oxford
from 1987 to 1989. From 1989 to 1990, he studied philosophy
and English
at the University of Oslo
. After that, from 1990 to 1993 he attended the Undergraduate Film and Television department at the New York University
's Tisch School of the Arts
. In 1994, he returned to Oslo
, Norway
and started working for Funcom
as producer, designer, writer, and level-editor of the video game adaptation of Casper
.
Ragnar Tørnquist has one daughter.
Tørnquist is credited with popularizing the term "modern adventure", a term used to describe contemporary adventure game design that began with games such as The Longest Journey
, Broken Sword
, and Syberia
. He felt that a new term was needed to describe this new generation of adventure games since "the classic point-and-click 'graphical adventure' is dead... The point of the 'modern adventure' [...] is to bring adventure gaming back into the mainstream, and to use technology and gameplay advances to bring the genre forward into the 'next generation'."
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
game designer and author
Author
An author is broadly defined as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created. Narrowly defined, an author is the originator of any written work.-Legal significance:...
. He works for Funcom
Funcom
Funcom Productions A/S is a Norwegian video game developer specializing in online games. It is best known for the massively multiplayer online role-playing game titles Age of Conan, Anarchy Online, and its The Longest Journey series of adventure games...
in Oslo
Oslo
Oslo is a municipality, as well as the capital and most populous city in Norway. As a municipality , it was established on 1 January 1838. Founded around 1048 by King Harald III of Norway, the city was largely destroyed by fire in 1624. The city was moved under the reign of Denmark–Norway's King...
.
Biography
Tørnquist studied art, history and EnglishEnglish language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
at St Clare's
St Clare's International School
St Clare's is an independent international boarding school in Oxford, England. It offers English language courses, Liberal arts courses, IB teacher training courses and the entire International Baccalaureate Diploma programme. There are over 40 nationalities represented amongst the student body in...
, Oxford
Oxford
The city of Oxford is the county town of Oxfordshire, England. The city, made prominent by its medieval university, has a population of just under 165,000, with 153,900 living within the district boundary. It lies about 50 miles north-west of London. The rivers Cherwell and Thames run through...
from 1987 to 1989. From 1989 to 1990, he studied philosophy
Philosophy
Philosophy is the study of general and fundamental problems, such as those connected with existence, knowledge, values, reason, mind, and language. Philosophy is distinguished from other ways of addressing such problems by its critical, generally systematic approach and its reliance on rational...
and English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
at the University of Oslo
University of Oslo
The University of Oslo , formerly The Royal Frederick University , is the oldest and largest university in Norway, situated in the Norwegian capital of Oslo. The university was founded in 1811 and was modelled after the recently established University of Berlin...
. After that, from 1990 to 1993 he attended the Undergraduate Film and Television department at the New York University
New York University
New York University is a private, nonsectarian research university based in New York City. NYU's main campus is situated in the Greenwich Village section of Manhattan...
's Tisch School of the Arts
Tisch School of the Arts
Tisch School of the Arts is one of the 15 schools that make up New York University ....
. In 1994, he returned to Oslo
Oslo
Oslo is a municipality, as well as the capital and most populous city in Norway. As a municipality , it was established on 1 January 1838. Founded around 1048 by King Harald III of Norway, the city was largely destroyed by fire in 1624. The city was moved under the reign of Denmark–Norway's King...
, Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
and started working for Funcom
Funcom
Funcom Productions A/S is a Norwegian video game developer specializing in online games. It is best known for the massively multiplayer online role-playing game titles Age of Conan, Anarchy Online, and its The Longest Journey series of adventure games...
as producer, designer, writer, and level-editor of the video game adaptation of Casper
Casper (film)
Casper is a 1995 American comedy fantasy film starring Bill Pullman and Christina Ricci, based on the Casper the Friendly Ghost animated cartoons and comic books. The ghosts featured in the film were created through computer-generated imagery...
.
Ragnar Tørnquist has one daughter.
Tørnquist is credited with popularizing the term "modern adventure", a term used to describe contemporary adventure game design that began with games such as The Longest Journey
The Longest Journey
The Longest Journey is a point-and-click adventure game developed by Norwegian studio Funcom for the PC. First published by IQ Media Nordic in Norway in 1999, it was later localized for and released in France, the United Kingdom, Germany, Italy, Belgium, the Netherlands, Canada, Spain, Denmark,...
, Broken Sword
Broken Sword
Broken Sword is a video game series created by game designer Charles Cecil of Revolution Software. The game series revolves around the adventures of Idaho-born George Stobbart and the French Nico Collard in several fictitious stories based on history and mythology. The first two games in the series...
, and Syberia
Syberia
Syberia is a 2002 computer adventure game conceived by Benoît Sokal, developed by Microïds and published through The Adventure Company. It follows the protagonist Kate Walker as she attempts to wrap up a sale on the behalf of her law firm...
. He felt that a new term was needed to describe this new generation of adventure games since "the classic point-and-click 'graphical adventure' is dead... The point of the 'modern adventure' [...] is to bring adventure gaming back into the mainstream, and to use technology and gameplay advances to bring the genre forward into the 'next generation'."
Producer/Designer
- Dragonheart: Fire & SteelDragonheart: Fire & SteelDragonHeart: Fire and Steel is a 2D side-scrolling action game loosely based on the 1996 fantasy/adventure film, Dragonheart.-Story:DragonHeart: Fire and Steel follows the story of medieval dragonslayer Sir Bowen, in his attempt to rid the world of a particularly evil king along with seven evil...
(1996) - The Longest JourneyThe Longest JourneyThe Longest Journey is a point-and-click adventure game developed by Norwegian studio Funcom for the PC. First published by IQ Media Nordic in Norway in 1999, it was later localized for and released in France, the United Kingdom, Germany, Italy, Belgium, the Netherlands, Canada, Spain, Denmark,...
(1999)
Writer/Director
- Anarchy OnlineAnarchy OnlineAnarchy Online is a massively multiplayer online role-playing game published and developed by Funcom. Released in the summer of 2001, the game was first in the genre to include a science-fiction setting, dynamic quests, free trials, and in-game advertising. The most ground breaking feature in...
(2001) - DreamfallDreamfallDreamfall: The Longest Journey is an adventure video game with elements of action-adventure. It was released for the Windows and Xbox platforms on 17 April 2006 by Norwegian developer Funcom...
(2006) - The Secret World (2012)