[LINKED] Beyond Twinsanity: Special Interview with J Mac by Cameron Sawaya

A new interview with Twinsanity developer J Mac has been added, you can check it out in the link below, it contains information about the game’s development and things about the studio, Travellers Tales Oxford and whatnot…

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CNBC: Activision Blizzard is doing for employees during coronavirus, full interview with the CEO “Bobby Kotick”

Bobby Kotick, Activision Blizzard CEO, joins ‘Squawk Box’ to discuss how his company transitioned to working from home, what he’s done to assist their comfort and the spike in activity the company is seeing as more people turn to video games during quarantine.

The uncertainty created by the coronavirus pandemic can take its toll on employees. For the 10,000 or so who work at Activision Blizzard around the world, one person they can call is CEO Bobby Kotick.

“About a month ago, we sent out an email from my email address with my phone number and we encouraged every single employee that has a concern that relates to their health care to just contact me directly,” Kotick told CNBC’s Becky Quick on “Squawk Box.”

Kotick said “a few hundred” employees have reached out to him since that email. “But we’re fortunate. Very few actually tested positive so far for Covid-19.”

He also complimented the work of Activision Blizzard’s human resources department as the maker of Call of Duty and World of Warcraft responded to the global outbreak.

“The team has been working 24/7 since we started work from home in our offices in China and our offices in Europe to really make sure that they were available for the benefit of the employees and their families,” he said.

Kotick, who has been CEO since 1991, said the Santa Monica, California-based company has taken additional steps to fortify health-care options for employees during the pandemic. “In countries where there are national health-care programs, we also have private doctors helping to assist and navigate through what can be a very complex process getting into national health care.”

Activision Blizzard also partnered with organizations for additional mental-health care and for licensed child care, said Kotick, noting the company has made investments to support research on treatments for Covid-19.

“We’ve always been a pioneer in these kinds of benefits, but some of the things we’re doing now, like supporting these clinical trials at important health institutions, these are things that are unprecedented for us as a company,” he said.

“But we’re definitely feeling from our employees that the extra investment, the extra attention, is appreciated,” Kotick added.

[LINKED] Electronic Gaming Monthly (EGM): The Artist Who Helped Create Crash, Spyro, and Jak and Daxter Has a Bone to Pick (Charles Zembillas)

Charles Zembillas is still waiting for credit where it’s due. The veteran animator cut his teeth on the likes of He-Man And The Masters Of The Universe and She-Ra: Princess Of Power before designing several of the most iconic video game mascots of all time: Crash Bandicoot, Spyro the Dragon, Jak and Daxter. As the man behind such gaming royalty, there’s a good chance his work played a significant role in your childhood—and an even greater chance you’ve never heard his name before now.

Zembillas calls himself “a real firebrand,” and it’s clear that he’s speaking from the heart. He’s immensely proud of what he’s created, but there’s definitely a bit of anger that games never quite gave him back what he put into them. It’s not a question of financial return; money rarely came up, and Zembillas continues to make a living off animation through the Animation Academy in Burbank, California, of which Zembillas is the founder, president, and lead instructor.

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Ars Technica’s War Stories with Andy Gavin: How Crash Bandicoot Hacked The Original Playstation

For today’s episode of War Stories, Ars Technica sat down with Naughty Dog Co-founder Andy Gavin to talk about the hurdles in bringing the original Crash Bandicoot to gamers around the world. When Andy and his partner Jason Rubin made the decision to bring the action platforming genre into three dimensions, it required living up to their company ethos of “leaving no stone unturned” in the search for memory – even if it meant hacking Sony’s library code.

Directed and Produced by Sean Dacanay
Edited and Graphics Animated by Jeremy Smolik

Links: Ars Technica’s Article – Andy Gavin’s Post

[LINKED] Media Moogle: Gamer Joe Radio Show’s Podcast Interview with Composer Marc Baril

Today on a very special episode of Gamer Joe Radio Show: Ole Gamer Joe and Angela pay tribute to game composer Marc Baril! Marc also joins Joe for an interview, where he discusses game music, working on the Genesis, and so much more. The campaign for composers starts now!

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For reference: Marc Baril composed video game soundtracks for all of Radical Entertainment’s Crash Bandicoot games: Crash Tag Team Racing (2005), Crash of the Titans (2007), and Crash Mind Over Mutant (2008)

[LINKED] Crash Bandicoot Zone (danyq94): Interview with a developer of Crash 99x (Tiger Electronics Handheld), ft. Mr. Crumb

I was contacted a few days ago by George F. (surname obscured according to his request) after he saw my video on Crash Bandicoot 99x.
He was kindly willing to answer some questions that Reddit users wanted to ask. Enjoy your reading.

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