While they’re ”two separate” studios and cultures they ”operate as one virtual” team. In the videogames industry not only ”one person can win” and lose.
”So it’s two separate studios and two separate studio cultures but we operate as one virtual studio, if you will. So it’s the best talent of both studios working on every aspect of the game together,” said Michael Condrey of Sledgehammer on their Infinity partnership.
”It provides some unique challenges, logistically, with having two separate teams but I think in the end, both teams are passionate, both teams are talented, the best ideas surface and that’s really the best for the fans in the game.”
Trying to top Modern Warfare’s pedigree is no small feat to achieve. ”We’re standing on the shoulders of greatness on Modern Warfare 2. It’s a fantastic game. Infinity Ward has been working in the franchise for a decade and they’re arguably the best first-person shooter development team out there,” said Condrey.
”They have a lot of legacy, history and knowledge with the franchise. They bring a lot of ideas of things they wanted to do in Modern Warfare 2 but didn’t get to just because of time.” Sledgehammer meanwhile has top talent from EA’s Dead Space franchise.
”So together, we push each other to look at every part of the game. The campaign, is it epic? What can we do to really push that forward?”
”Spec Ops, how do we make sure it’s the best? So there’s a commitment to excellence, leave it all on the table, just push as hard as you can mentality.”
What about the conflict between Activision’s Call of Duty and EA’s Battlefield?
”Well I can tell you, I’m not sure if you caught Eric Hirshberg’s speech at keynote at GDC a couple of days ago where he talked about his view on competition which I share, I think there’s some people feel like only one person can win and only one person can lose,” said the studio co-founder. EA heartily disagrees and says Call of Duty’s days are finite.
”I don’t view it as a win-lose situation.”
”I think the industry is healthy and there are a ton of fans out there who love games and great content. And I’m a fan. At the root of my passion for games, I’m a fan. I think there’s fantastic stuff for everyone. Uncharted 3 looks great, right? I’m glad to see that.”
Check out the full interview between Michael Condrey and NowGamer.
