"The thing I asked for was: If I take it over, I want to be George Lucas. I want to own everything, and I want to do things differently."
- 343 Industries chief Bonnie Ross recalls her decision to pick up Halo where Bungie left off.
Bloomberg Businessweek published a profile of 343 Industries boss Bonnie Ross on its website today that's worth reading for insight into how both the studio and its chief operate.
The story is timed to coincide with the impending launch of Halo 5 next week, and alongside descriptions of Halo toy vetting sessions and lore meetings are details about 343's production process and Ross' own career at Microsoft that fellow game developers may appreciate.
"During game development, you can feel the pulse. You can walk in and tell if we’re off or not, and whether morale is up or down," is how Ross describes the atmosphere of the converted suburban hardware store that serves as 343's headquarters.
Her recollection of how she got there is also interesting -- Ross reportedly started at Microsoft in '89 working on manuals, and got so desperate for a change of pace that she talked her way onto a sports game development team.
"I just wanted to take a break," she told Bloomberg. "Just for, like, one year, to work on something that my friends would understand."
The full profile (which is also a cover story in the print edition of Bloomberg Businessweek) is worth your time to read over on the Bloomberg website.