Bungie.net interviews 'Thunder'
This is a record of the original interview, which you can see over at Bungie.net.
First off, can we have a name... or is your given name Thunder?
Thunder is just my nickname when I’m gaming. Graham Somers is what I generally go by.
What is your main job at Ensemble? And what is a normal day of work at Ensemble like for you?
I’m the Community Manager at Ensemble Studios, which means that I manage the content on our websites and act as the liaison between the fans and the developers here, and vice versa. I don’t have any "normal" days at Ensemble. :)
Is being a Halowars.com Moderator a side job? And do you get paid for moderating?
Everyone that moderates our forums is an employee of Ensemble Studios, so they are indeed paid to do the job.
Why were you chosen to be a Moderator on the Halo Wars site? Is it because of your unnaturally bright smile?
Thank you for noticing. :) Reading our forums is a big part of communicating with our fans, so it stands to reason that moderating is just part of that job. Like it or not, there are crazy people on the internet who simply want to mess with others. They provide us with all sorts of job security!
What is a normal day of work at Ensemble like for you?
I try to get into the office for 9:30am and usually spend half an hour going over e-mails, forum posts, and private messages. Rarely do I have two days that are the same here at Ensemble, so I’ll just go over what I’ve done so far today:
*Attended our Monday Morning Meeting where we update everyone on what we’re working on.
*Answered about 30 e-mails sent to our webmaster e-mail alias.
*Discussed an Age of Empires III Deathmatch bug via e-mail and how we’re going to handle it.
*Sent our weekly Age of Empires III statistics to everyone at the company.
*Lunch!
*Discussed February content for HaloWars.com with my co-workers.
*Discussed the best way to add a permanent link to Bruce Shelley’s blog to AgeCommunity.com.
*Started working on an image for Bruce Shelley’s Blog.
*Started answering interview questions….that’s as far as I’ve gotten today.
For those who don’t know, what is the backstory of Halo Wars?
No one knows! At least, not the all important details, we’re saving those. The main idea though is that the game takes place in the year 2531, after the fall of Harvest to the Covenant and well before the events of the first Halo game which takes place in 2552. The campaign will revolve around a UNSC ship called the Spirit of Fire and her crew as they take part in the fight against the Covenant.
What is your favorite Real Time Strategy game of all time?
The original Age of Empires game. I made some great friends playing that game online in the late 90s, some of whom I still talk to today. It definitely holds a special place in my little heart because of that.
How do you think Halo Wars will compare to your favorite RTS game or other RTS games?
Halo Wars is still taking shape right now as the design team is cranking away on the game, so that’s a little hard to say. It’s certainly the first console RTS game that I’ve truly enjoyed playing.
Do you think that Halo Wars will be the game that revolutionizes the Console-RTS world?
That’s pretty much our aim, but if that wasn’t enough we’ve got plenty of pressure to deliver a great game because this is a Halo title too. How’s that for a double whammy? Whether we succeed or not is going to be up to you guys. I think we’re definitely on the right road.
Interview added on 02/04/08