The Fab Four behind Vendetta
Interviews
information
11/04/2004
Fyrn
Fyrn
We start off with John Bergman, Managing Director at Guild Software.
Interview with John Bergman
MM Hell: What was the first game you played and made you think "I want to do this for a living"?
John Bergman: I didn't, really. The company was something that evolved out of playing a lot of games with my friends, and then writing software with my friends (for fun). We did this for years. Eventually we said "hey, we should try doing this for a living".
MM Hell: To go with the above question, how long have you been in the industry? And how long did it take for you to break into it?
John Bergman: Well, we've been working on Vendetta Online for several years. None of us had any previous experience in the game industry.
MM Hell: Were your family/friends supportive when you decided to get into the industry?
John Bergman: My family is incredibly supportive of everything I do, no matter how outlandish. Some of my friends think I'm a little "out there", but this sort of thing is no less than they would expect of me.
MM Hell: Outside of playing and creating games, what hobbies do you enjoy?
John Bergman: Racing cars (autocross, rally, ice racing), photography, writing music, playing the guitar, trying to figure out how things work (be it my car's transmission or the universe).
MM Hell: What would you be doing for a living if you couldn't work in the game industry?
John Bergman: I don't really know, I have a lot of interests. I find that things seem to come along at the right time, and I just need to be paying attention when they do.
MM Hell: What is one movie you could watch over and not get sick of it?
John Bergman: Leon (The Professional, international edition).
MM Hell: Ok, now for a quick list of questions to finish things up: Hummer, Dodge Viper, or Mini-Van?
John Bergman: Viper, I guess. Or more likely a rally car.
MM Hell: Fillet Minion, Baby Back Ribs, or Pizza?
John Bergman: Steak is ok, but I'm more into rice and pasta and stuff. Seafood, mmm.
MM Hell: Double Espresso, Red Bull, or Bawls?
John Bergman: I like tea, but it's mostly all decaf.
MM Hell: What is your browsers homepage set to?
John Bergman: blank
Next comes Ray Ratelis, Programmer.
Interview with Ray Ratelis
MM Hell: What was the first game you played and made you think "I want to do this for a living"?
Ray Ratelis: I didn't decide to make games that way. Back in the early 90's I saw a demo called Unreal (not to be confused with the game Unreal). From then on I wanted to program computer graphics. The games industry is the only one that pays for that sort of thing.
MM Hell: To go with the above question, how long have you been in the industry? And how long did it take for you to break into it?
Ray Ratelis: I joined Guild back in 1996 after graduating from the Milwaukee School Of Engineering. It didn't take very long to break into it. Probably about 2 years while I was working at Dynamic Realities making plugins for Lightwave 3D.
MM Hell: Were your family/friends supportive when you decided to get into the industry?
Ray Ratelis: Not really. My family thought I was wasting my time and not making as much money as I theoretically could have. It's still hard to convince them sometimes about my decision.
MM Hell: Outside of playing and creating games, what hobbies do you enjoy?
Ray Ratelis: I like pen-and-paper RPGing and miniatures gaming. I also like modeling but haven't done that in a while. I used to be involved in model trains (HO scale) back in college. I also like just hanging out with my wife.
MM Hell: What would you be doing for a living if you couldn't work in the game industry?
Ray Ratelis: I would probably be working for the special effects industry or making 3D rendering packages. If not those I would just be programming somewhere else.
MM Hell: What is one movie you could watch over and not get sick of it?
Ray Ratelis: Hmm. That's a though one. I would have to say Tron.
MM Hell: Ok, now for a quick list of questions to finish things up: Hummer, Dodge Viper, or Mini-Van?
Ray Ratelis: Normal car that gets good gas milage.
MM Hell: Fillet Minion, Baby Back Ribs, or Pizza?
Ray Ratelis: Ribs are yummy.
MM Hell: Double Espresso, Red Bull, or Bawls?
Ray Ratelis: Dt. Mt. Dew
MM Hell: What is your browsers homepage set to?
Ray Ratelis: ratelis.com/links.html (well, actually a local version that's been slightly updated)
Next Page (Interviews with Waylon Brinck and Andy Sloane) >>
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