Friday, April 5, 2013

News::Warren Spector: AAA innovation will inevitably be limited

No one is going to dispute that the entire Epic Mickey franchise was the Matterhorn of unrealized potential. How much of that was due to developer Junction Point Studio's lofty ambitions versus Disney's demands and constraints, I couldn't say. I will say that the Junction Point team was filled with highly talented individuals, such as studio co-founder Warren Spector. Having spent a day at Magic Kingdom with the man, I can vouch that his passion is 100% genuine.


It wasn't hard to feel bad for Spector when Junction Point shuttered following poor sales of Epic Mickey 2. Legally unable to publicly discuss the matter until after April 1, he finally spilled the beans in an interview with GamesIndustry International. In addition to talking about his experience working under Disney's wing, he also hinted towards his future game development plans and expressed apprehension towards working on AAA projects anytime soon.


Surprisingly, Spector doesn't bear any deep grudge against his former employer and is rather grateful that he was able to fulfill a lifelong dream of working for Disney. Despite not quite understanding the tangled bureaucracy of one of the biggest media companies in the world -- "I've learned that I don't play politics very well, that's for sure, and I'm not great with bosses, generally" -- he doesn't regret his initial decision to sell Junction Point to the House of Mouse. But that doesn't mean that working on two massive AAA titles with equally massive teams didn't take its toll.


Warren Spector: AAA innovation will inevitably be limited screenshot


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via destructoid http://www.destructoid.com/warren-spector-aaa-innovation-will-inevitably-be-limited-250907.phtml