BioWare founders Greg Zeschuk and Ray Muzyka recently sat down for a lengthy interview with Eurogamer. The doctors discussed Dragon Age II, Mass Effect 2, and more importantly for MMORPG fans, Star Wars: The Old Republic. In terms of a release window, Muzyka confirmed 2011 for the Star Wars opus but wouldn't commit to the first half, second half, or any other portion of the year.
The interview also addressed the recent rant by EA Louse that, in part, predicted The Old Republic would be "one of the greatest failures in the history of MMOs" and that also decried working conditions at BioWare-Mythic. Zeschuk and Muzyka mentioned the fact that BioWare recently won a top 100 employers award and invests both time and money into bettering the workplace environment for employees. When pressed as to the credibility of the anonymous poster, the doctors dismissed the posting as difficult to act upon. "We sit down and do an open forum with all the employees and get feedback from them. We welcome one-on-one feedback. When we get stuff we can improve and act on we do it," Muzyka said.
Finally, the interview touches on the financial gamble that TOR represents for BioWare and Electronic Arts, and neither founder comes across as particularly concerned. "We know millions and millions of people out there love this universe, and we're delivering a great game experience in that universe," Muzyka said. Head to Eurogamer for the full article text.
Reader Comments (36)
Posted: Nov 5th 2010 12:34PM (Unverified) said
Very well spoken by the both of them, even handed and political. Are you sure they aren't lawyers?
Posted: Nov 5th 2010 1:52PM (Unverified) said
It's very likely Lawyers scripted or coached their responses.
Reply
Posted: Nov 5th 2010 1:21PM (Unverified) said
They sound like politicians -___-
and yet again loose my respect.
Not to mention that its again, yet again same "yay this will be great, believe in us:" hype with no context.
If people are disappointed, how about you SHOW actual primary gameplay mechanics, instead of talking about those all cool features it will (maybe) have.
and yet again loose my respect.
Not to mention that its again, yet again same "yay this will be great, believe in us:" hype with no context.
If people are disappointed, how about you SHOW actual primary gameplay mechanics, instead of talking about those all cool features it will (maybe) have.
Posted: Nov 5th 2010 2:22PM (Unverified) said
"If people are disappointed, how about you SHOW actual primary gameplay mechanics, instead of talking about those all cool features it will (maybe) have"
This ..
Tired of hearing about voice overs, and it's a little sad that the most interesting news they've had (gameplay wise) has been the confirmation that there is PvP (which we already knew, so really it's not news at all). Honestly I see this as a box sales failure of a game. There is nothing about end game, except that they told us there is one. There is nothing interesting, new, or unique about this game except that it's made by BioWare, has voiced quests, oh and lightsabres. Neither of the three compel me to want to part with my $50 + dollars.
Reply
This ..
Tired of hearing about voice overs, and it's a little sad that the most interesting news they've had (gameplay wise) has been the confirmation that there is PvP (which we already knew, so really it's not news at all). Honestly I see this as a box sales failure of a game. There is nothing about end game, except that they told us there is one. There is nothing interesting, new, or unique about this game except that it's made by BioWare, has voiced quests, oh and lightsabres. Neither of the three compel me to want to part with my $50 + dollars.
Posted: Nov 5th 2010 1:05PM toychristopher said
I'm surprised that they responded to those questions at all. But, it's also kind of strange to me that they didn't come out and say "It's a hoax." The information presented by EA louse seems like it would be easy for a fellow employee to know if it was real or not.
Posted: Nov 5th 2010 3:21PM Fakeassname said
would naturally lead to inferring that it's not a Hoax ....
Reply
Posted: Nov 5th 2010 1:26PM Solp said
Wow, these are the guys behind Bioware? Pathetic, no wonder Louse thought what he did.
Posted: Nov 5th 2010 1:30PM (Unverified) said
Meh, most professional workplaces are slave shops in terms of hours and workloads anymore.
60 hours a week is the low side in IC design engineering.
At crunch time it can skyrocket to 90 hours weeks easy.
Keeping in mind that most professional work is salary and not hourly. So there is no overtime pay and virtually never any comp-time.
I assume software design isn't much different. Very long hours is the nature of the beast in most professional fields these days.
The problems come when you get someone who thought it was suppose to be mostly 40 hour weeks with overtime once in a while for pay.
Then the reality gets that person to start screaming like Louse.
60 hours a week is the low side in IC design engineering.
At crunch time it can skyrocket to 90 hours weeks easy.
Keeping in mind that most professional work is salary and not hourly. So there is no overtime pay and virtually never any comp-time.
I assume software design isn't much different. Very long hours is the nature of the beast in most professional fields these days.
The problems come when you get someone who thought it was suppose to be mostly 40 hour weeks with overtime once in a while for pay.
Then the reality gets that person to start screaming like Louse.
Posted: Nov 5th 2010 2:46PM delphinius81 said
Well, if you aren't a contract employee and fired, er released, after the work is done, then you typically get a nice paid vacation afterwards. Although for an MMO it isn't exactly the same since there is often a lot of work to do immediately after launch as far as transitioning from pre-launch to live development teams. And while salaried employees don't get overtime, they do get bonuses and other profit-sharing type incentives (stock options) based on the success of the game. These kinds of things aren't offered to hourly workers who can claim overtime pay. As for contract workers, well, negotiate a better contract...
Reply
Posted: Nov 5th 2010 3:09PM Interitus said
This is very true. A close friend of mine works as a scripter for a large company. His days run from Getting into the office at 9 am start at 10am and 'On a good day' heading home at 11 pm.
It's only when you are higher up the food chain can you have nerf fights in the halls or whatever fun exciting work enviroment companies claim to have.
And as Naug says, when they get close to hitting a milestone my friend falls off the radar altogether.
Reply
It's only when you are higher up the food chain can you have nerf fights in the halls or whatever fun exciting work enviroment companies claim to have.
And as Naug says, when they get close to hitting a milestone my friend falls off the radar altogether.
Posted: Nov 5th 2010 4:39PM (Unverified) said
Hey - you could go work Part Time at Starbucks - the hardly work any hours....
Reply
Posted: Nov 5th 2010 1:35PM Syesta said
That's some pro-level side-stepping.
Posted: Nov 5th 2010 1:39PM Distaste said
The top 100 employers award they got was for being a top employer in Canada. The working conditions at the Canada offices aren't what people were complaining about. it's Bioware Austin, which if you don't know your maps, is in the US. The majority of complaints also stem from contractors, which rumor has it make up the bulk of the people working on the game.
So that part is pretty much spin.
The release date waffeling also shows that the game is probably going to not make the spring 2011 date. Perhaps the rumors of the game being in bad shape and things being reworked is true?
As for the millions and millions he talks about, yeah they like Star Wars but it doesn't mean they like Star Wars games let alone a Star Wars MMO. SWG didn't get millions, SWTOR beta sign ups still haven't gotten a million let alone Millions. The console market does not transfer to the PC market, I think people are giving him bad info or he is making a very big assumption.
So that part is pretty much spin.
The release date waffeling also shows that the game is probably going to not make the spring 2011 date. Perhaps the rumors of the game being in bad shape and things being reworked is true?
As for the millions and millions he talks about, yeah they like Star Wars but it doesn't mean they like Star Wars games let alone a Star Wars MMO. SWG didn't get millions, SWTOR beta sign ups still haven't gotten a million let alone Millions. The console market does not transfer to the PC market, I think people are giving him bad info or he is making a very big assumption.
Posted: Nov 5th 2010 6:32PM CCon99 said
I agree with you on the Star Wars fans. Look at last week's Force Unleashed 2, as soon as word got out in reviews that the game had a terrible story compared to the original and that it could be completed in less than 5 hours, the game didn't even last a full 2 days on Gamestop's best selling list (they probably spent more on those sassy looking TV commercials then they did on developing the game). Star Wars fans are just like any other gamer, if a game is really good and has a good buzz around it, they'll buy it. If it's not a good game, they'll avoid it like the plague. Slapping "Star Wars" on your product might make you a bigger blip on people's radar, but you still have to make a quality product to get them to buy your game and stay subscribed to it.
Reply
Posted: Nov 5th 2010 1:41PM (Unverified) said
Yeah, my company paid for one of those "greatest places to work" surveys to0 and we were highly "encouraged" to vote with most positive responses possible. Let's just say I accidentally deleted the survey link, twice. I you have nothing good to say...
Posted: Nov 5th 2010 2:26PM silvertemplar said
Bioware != Mythic. Even though they're merging the studios, i don't think these two guys really have anything to do with EA Louse's problems.
This is like asking Blizzard about the doings of Activision / Kotick and the unhappiness of Infinity Ward employees . Blizzard will most likely be "political" too, even though it's not their problem.
This is like asking Blizzard about the doings of Activision / Kotick and the unhappiness of Infinity Ward employees . Blizzard will most likely be "political" too, even though it's not their problem.
Posted: Nov 5th 2010 3:19PM Fakeassname said
not quite true, EA is dissolving Mythic into Bioware's online division.
remember that Bioware started setting up that studio in Austin before the buyout, so "yes, bioware has quite a lot to do with that studio." it's more Bioware's than it is EA's ...
probably a good reason that Bioware set up that studio IN America (instead of Canada) is because, I imagine, that America's labor laws are more forgiving when you treat a large set of staff like cattle.
Reply
remember that Bioware started setting up that studio in Austin before the buyout, so "yes, bioware has quite a lot to do with that studio." it's more Bioware's than it is EA's ...
probably a good reason that Bioware set up that studio IN America (instead of Canada) is because, I imagine, that America's labor laws are more forgiving when you treat a large set of staff like cattle.
Posted: Nov 5th 2010 3:23PM (Unverified) said
"Bioware != Mythic.
This is like asking Blizzard about the doings of Activision / Kotick "
The Blizzard / Activision comparison isn't the same. Those 2 have been designed to be semi-seperate.
While Mythic is indeed being absorbed into Bioware totally.
Reply
This is like asking Blizzard about the doings of Activision / Kotick "
The Blizzard / Activision comparison isn't the same. Those 2 have been designed to be semi-seperate.
While Mythic is indeed being absorbed into Bioware totally.




