If I'm right, you made your first game, Trek For Riches, at the age of 13. What was the beginning point of your interest in video game development?
When I was about 12, I was a sponsored BMX racer and spent a lot of time at our local bike shop. The shop had a few arcade machines, such as Space Invaders, Asteroids, and Red Baron. I got to play these a lot. I also had an early ColecoVision and Atari system at home. This was probably my first exposure to video games. My first programming exposure was, technically, with an electronics kit, but I also had a Timex Sinclair kit I built, and I was able to use the computer lab at a local university – this is where I really learned to program.
Bethesda was a good company – a self-publishing company that was unique in its use of licensed products. Chris Weaver had ties in Hollywood that allowed him to secure some good licenses like Terminator and Gretzky. When I joined, there was a lot of effort being put into finishing up Arena (RPG) and several other projects were underway. My team helped with various parts of these and we also began development of some of our own. I enjoyed working with Chris (Weaver), Vlatko (Andonov), and the rest of the team in Maryland. Vlatko and I had many great adventures traveling around the world and meeting developers, distributors, and licensors. As Bethesda expanded, it got less personal and more business-focused by necessity.
You were the founder of Flashpoint Productions, which was later sold to Bethesda Softworks, at which point you started working as a Development Director for Bethesda. How was your experience working there?
Originally it did. At Flashpoint, we had contemplated moving into publishing (and actually published one development utility). When we met with Bethesda, the system and philosophy they had in place were what we were looking for. We also had discussions with EA and others, but we wanted to have an influence on how our products were developed and produced. We felt like Bethesda was the right size and that this could still happen. Bethesda has changed a lot since then. In the 5 or 6 years I was there, it went from a smallish publisher to a multi-acquisition, investor-owned company. The philosophy was very different. It's not good or bad, just different.
At the time, you said that Bethesda Softworks shared the same philosophy as you, and I'm curious whether you still feel the same about the company after so long.
I would still love to finish a drag racing game that I have been working sporadically on for many years. When I wrote the first one back in the 90s, there were limitations in technology that would not allow me to realize some of the design concepts I wanted (chassis dynamics and multiplayer are two of the big areas). Now technology is there, and I think it would be great fun to realize the vision.
Which of your games do you believe could be excellent now if remade with modern technology?
I was part of the early work on the 10th Planet. Bruce (Nesmith) and Todd were working on the design, along with some input from Centropolis Entertainment. I was involved in a few of those meetings and some of the technology discussions. I was disappointed that it was not realized while I was there. The reason it was canceled is a bit fuzzy. I know part of it was due to Centropolis pulling back, as well as other project priorities in Bethesda. I don’t think it was actually formally “canceled” but just moved out of the priorities.
Speaking of games, one title that Bethesda worked on in the late 90s is The 10th Planet. It was a space combat game recently brought up by Todd Howard in an interview. Were you involved in that project? And can you tell us why it was canceled?
I'm not sure which games Todd was referring to, but I know there were several games being talked about that never came about. There were a few with Centropolis, including Godzilla and StarGate (and others that I probably can't mention since the movies were not made). We also were talking about a new Gretzky game and a new baseball game. There were also some discussions about expanding the Terminator products. So, a lot of concepts but limitations on team size, etc., limit what you can do.
In the same interview, Todd mentioned several game ideas that were pitched back then. If you were involved or knew of any such projects, could you tell us about them?
I actually still make games. I work on pet projects all the time. Sometimes, it’s just to play around with new technology or game engines or to explore a new technique I’ve read about. I really enjoy simulation and story games, so maybe there is a concept there that could be interesting.
If you could return to making video games, what genre would you love to explore?