TGR: Being that you are the CEO, obviously you wear many hats. At the time, I am sure that has either changed or gotten lighter because you have hired people. But what was the experience like when you first started and what do you do now? What has your life been like?

DD: It is totally different. When I first started, I was a programmer. I guess I was one of the first in the industry who said we needed a Director. I stopped programming and started directing. I was always the President at the same time and now it is getting to the point, as the company grows larger, that I have to start making decisions on which direction to go. But at the end of the day, as the company grows, it is now becoming understanding the process, where innovation comes from and the difference between technology, research and innovation.

Because you can innovate and not necessarily have the best technology. It all comes down to what’s the best for your process. And those are pretty fundamental disconnects that a lot of people do not understand. As the company grows and the culture changes, we change and have to try to keep that culture going. I have to decide what the best thing is for that. Even if I am the right person to have that continue in the future, these are all really tough questions. Anyone who has been in something for a long time and sees it grow, knows it is always an interesting challenge. I have some paths in mind, but I have no answers for what exactly is going to happen.

TGR: A lot of people think that working for a game company means that they are going to be gaming 24/7. What is the atmosphere like at SI, SK?

DD: It is very creative, challenging and hard work – just like at every game company. Video games are a very challenging industry and we work very diligently at keeping it creative, stimulating and making sure people do not over work themselves. Because it can become a place that you do not ever want to leave, and that is not good. We have created something called the Interactive Arts and Sciences at the local University and we have had professors come and lecture at the company for over ten years, in the middle of the day every two or three weeks, just to get people excited and thinking about things.

It cannot just be about money, and about the work all the time. Even though you love the work, and it is creative, you need to have outlets to really stimulate your thinking in as many ways as possible.

TGR: I have heard that you have some pretty strong opinions when it comes to the console and the PC market.

DD: I have just been told that I have pretty strong opinions, period.

TGR: What do you think about the virgins and the whole possibility of the consoles merging? Were you at MI Experiences?

DD: No.

TGR: They were talking about the next ten years, and the possibility that the software and disc will be gone. Also, they surmise that downloadable, on demand games which are more basically PC oriented, are possible. I feel it is more going to be like a piece of hardware that is very integral to your entertainment system, but it is not necessarily an Xbox or a PS3.

DD: My thoughts on one console future is based on economic theory, commoditization, and performance over supply. A lot of people think I am saying this because it is a future that I want. Actually, I am indifferent about it. I think it is inevitable, and only a matter of time. When you consider commoditization with the cell phone, the first cell phones were actually analog and the fact that you could talk to someone wirelessly was fantastic. Now, I can do e-mail, download videos, listen to music and the price of these has dropped radically. It is the number of features that is almost inversely proportional to its value, and that is called commoditization.
The cell phone industry has been hit really hard with commoditization and it really hurts brand names and the like.

What is happening with the consoles, is that they are starting to do so much, the trend leaning toward being commoditized. The fact that they are all proprietary right now, is making it very difficult for everyone to maintain competitiveness. I am just looking at the economics of the industry and wondering how this model will continue. I do not see it. It is kind of like the same thing with E3. People spend a lot of money on the show, and it is not making any sense. I see the same thing happening with the consoles. It is not like I want anyone to win or lose; I am completely neutral on it, but I am just looking at the economics and believing that there is a trend towards commoditization and performance over supply.

How many games come out in November? Was last year over 350? Is it possible for consumers to even digest that number of games? That is what is called “performance over supply,” where the industry is over supplying what the consumer can actually consume. That model cannot continue, in the long term, anyway. That is where I come from on those issues, so I guess maybe I have a strong opinion. I have heard people be cynical on it. I wish people would be more critical and that they could use some micro or macro economics as to why that is not working. I am just looking at general trends and I still have not heard anything that dissuades me from saying that is not going to happen.

TGR: With the scenario that you are painting, as far as why it could get to that point makes sense. We have seen historically, a lot of different types of products. I myself have come from the web hosting industry. My postings started out in the early 1990’s at $30.00 to $40.00 a month. Now it has gone to $95.00 a month, plus you get your business cards, and your lawyer that every single business needs, as a commodity. The entertainment system most definitely becomes a commodity, because it has all of these different things. And then there is Microsoft’s global domination in a sense of the entertainment system, which is actually very good for the consumer I think, but where can you see it?

DD: If you are going to look at commoditization, it means that the value of the hardware actually diminishes. Technology is accelerating in a rhythmic rate, ten times every so often. So just extrapolating to the future, and this is going to sound wild and a little crazy, but I think the hardware is just going to disappear after a while and start moving to cloud models. This is ironic not because Justin is here from Microsoft, but I think Microsoft is probably the most advanced in Live or moving towards the cloud models, where there really is no physical platform. I think that is the future. It is not necessarily multi player games, but if the distribution network becomes all digital, you think about that and it prevents piracy. You do not have to worry about it, because there is nothing to physically copy anymore. So I think that is the ultimate future, where if you have to worry about how much RAM you have and how fast it is, it is just not fast enough yet. It will get there, once we break those barriers. Essentially, the hardware will get so good, it will no longer be around.