So it has been a while since my last post. The workload of school projects and just regular homework had finally caught up to me. Seeing as its the last week and like most college student there are a lucky few who have classes but no work to turn in! I am one of those few and because of that I felt updates where in order!
So you might have noticed I had an interview with Mr. Michael Morhaime the President and CEO of Blizzard Entertainment. It was 3:45 on Nov 19th and I had everything setup on my computer with not one but two recorders just in case one failed I would have a back up. The TV was muted and the cat was in the bathroom. As the 4:00PM mark came around my cell phone began to rattle around on my desk as if it was doing a happy dance. My heart began to race as I reached for it though I let it ring a few times just to give the feeling of, hey I'm a busy person too okay! However thing quickly turned south when I heard the sound of a woman's voice informing me Mr. Morhaime is ill and wont be able to conduct the interview. /sadface.... Nether the less I said "Oh its not a problem, things like this happen and you really cant control it." Although in my head it was more like ARE YOU KIDDING ME!!?? We had this interview setup a month in advance and you wait till the last minutes to say, Oh I'm sorry.. better luck next time.
Although I wasn't able to conduct the interview in the fashion I intended I was able to get him or his assistant to fill out an emailed list of questions and here they are.,,
Me:
Starting with your background, what made you want to start your own business and what were your first steps?
Mr. Morhaime:
I studied Electrical Engineering at UCLA. I was always interesting in learning how stuff worked. A good friend at UCLA convinced me to quit my job at Western Digital and go into business with him creating a new video game company. He told me things like: (“) << this is where a part of the email went poof. I assume it was one of those life lesson quotes that make you become the most powerful person in the world and I didn't get it!
Me:
What is a typical day like being the CEO of Blizzard Entertainment.
Mr. Morhaime:
I spend most of the day in e-mail and meetings, though the topics constantly change.
Right now we are preparing for the launch of World of Warcraft: Cataclysm, we are putting together our annual operating plan for 2011 (which involves lots of meetings with each function to go over our priorities for the year, and projected spending), and we just rolled out some new ways to pay for StarCraft II in Latin America, Southeast Asia and Russia (which means we need to monitor the player response, and make sure everything is working as expected).
Me:
How is the economy affecting the game industry as a whole and if so how has it directly affected Blizzard Entertainment.
Mr. Morhaime:
People are much more selective about what they will spend money on. The top games continue to do very well (Activision’s Call of Duty: Black Ops just set a record for the biggest entertainment launch ever ($650M in five days), and StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty which launched in July is the fastest selling strategy game of all time). However, it is a very difficult market for games that are of lower quality. There are a lot of free to play options out there.
That said, Blizzard’s games have continued to sell well. World of Warcraft remains the #1 massively multiplayer online role playing game in the world (for the past six years), and StarCraft II is the best selling PC game of the year so far.
Me:
What is the most important thing for someone planning to enter the game industry to know?
Mr. Morhaime:
Focus on the things that you are most passionate about, and get good at them. I suggest experimenting with your own simple games on your own. Learn how to make games for the web, facebook, or the iPhone. These will help you in your career, and may help you get a job.
Me:
What part of your job do you find most satisfying, most challenging and why?
Mr. Morhaime:
Its always very rewarding to launch a new game and watch the reaction from our players. I also enjoy analyzing data to understand what our players are doing and figure out ways that we can improve their experience.
Me:
If you ever left your job, what would be the most likely reason to drive you away?
Mr. Morhaime:
Trying to keep millions of people happy and entertained can also be very stressful.
Me:
What is the next step in your career?
Mr. Morhaime:
I would like to see Blizzard take its franchises to the silver screen. We are currently working with Legendary Pictures and Sam Raimi to create a movie based on Warcraft. I don’t think there has been a successful video game franchise turned into a movie that lives up to the franchises potential. Hopefully we can be the first, and prove that it can be done.
