I usually try to avoid commenting on stuff written by other people. It’s lame and a sorry excuse for not coming up with content of your own. Yet, I’m doing it for the third time within one week, simply because these things are too relevant to be ignored. So here it goes:
F13.net has posted an interview with the man himself, Brad McQuaid. There is a heavy focus on the history of the Sigil / Microsoft relationship and Brad basically blames Microsoft while insisting that he doesn’t blame Microsoft. There is a followup over at the Silky Venom forums.
Being forced to produce milestones that are completely disconnected from the work that needs to be done is something I’ve experienced myself in the past. I don’t know whether Brad’s side of the story is accurate or just more bullshit but it does sound plausible to me.
His excuses for not being around on launch day and at the “firing party” are a bit pathetic. He was the CEO of Sigil and the executive producer of Vanguard. The alpha dog. Elsewhere he wrote: “I do not compartmentalize well and don’t handle these situations very well“. Cleary, the guy isn’t manager material and has no business in a position of responsibility.
There is stuff that’s new to me, like the falling-out between McQuaid and Jeff Butler and the nepotism involved in Sigil’s hiring decisions. Interesting, to say the least. He also offers a somewhat plausible explanation for the lack of QA personnel.
I think at this point we have a fairly good idea of what went wrong. I’ll leave it at that. There’s no point in commenting on it any further, I’d much rather focus on the game itself.