Earlier this week, Diablo III game director Jay Wilson lashed out at
Diablo I and II maker David Brevik after stating his mixed emotions regarding Diablo III.
After countless threads appeared on the forums regarding the drama, Wilson has issued a public statement in response to his out of hand comment.
“As many of you probably know, I recently made a comment on Facebook about Dave Brevik. I want to make it clear that I am very sorry for what I said,” Wilson states.
“I have higher expectations for myself than to express my feelings in such a rash way and disrespect a fellow developer like Dave, someone who deserves to be treated with greater respect.”
Whether the apology is sincere or a typical act of corporate damage control, we'll let you decide.
He goes on to explain:
Stay On the Cutting Edge: Get the Tom's Hardware Newsletter
Get Tom's Hardware's best news and in-depth reviews, straight to your inbox.
What I said was expressed out of anger, and in defense of my team and the game. People can say what they want about me, but I don't take lightly when they disparage the commitment and passion of the Diablo III team. Dave is awesome. In Diablo and Diablo II, he made two of the games that have most affected me as a developer. I respect his vision for Diablo, but just like he said in his interview, the Diablo III team must drive a vision for the game that is true to us. We believe in Diablo and have stuck by it through years of hard development to make it a reality. The foundation of the Diablo team was built from the remnants of Blizzard North: Our lead programmer, who built the basis of the Diablo III engine while at Blizzard North; our lead tech artist, who drove much of the combat visuals, FX, and skill direction of our classes and is one of the most avid Diablo II players you can find; our lead concept artist, who helped establish the core look of the game; Wyatt Cheng, our senior technical game designer, who writes many of our blogs and works tirelessly on the live game. All these people and many others made the commitment to Diablo even after Blizzard North shut down. It was hard for me to see their contributions be diminished by someone they worked alongside, and even harder for me not to try to jump to their defense. I only wish I'd done so in a more professional manner.
Within 20 hours of its initial post, the thread has already reached 80 pages of mixed replies, some coming to Jay's defense and others with torches and pitchforks. Even now, most comments agree Wilson has taken Brevik's mild criticisms of the game far too personally, especially since his comments lined up with a majority of the Diablo III community.
Alongside his public apology, Wilson also discusses his personal connection to the franchise and the team's goals for the future of the title. To read the whole statement, head on over to the forum posting here. What are your thoughts on the whole debacle? Has Wilson and his team taken a step in the right direction with the recent 1.0.4 patch?
-
freggo "I want to make it clear that I am very sorry for what I said"Reply
Never say you are sorry. It's a sign of weakness :-)
-
sixdegree sincere or a typical act of corporate damage control
I bet my half years supply of bacon, it's the later. -
neiroatopelcc freggo"I want to make it clear that I am very sorry for what I said"Never say you are sorry. It's a sign of weakness :-)Reply
He said he was sorry, but not that he didn't mean what he said -
DroKing Wow really? I wonder if he would have said this if the comment didn't get the publicity instead. I BET NOT. You are still a fa**ot, Jay Wilson for gaying Diablo Franchise up.Reply -
hotroderx I am starting to think he knows the game is one major flop.Reply
Maybe he has started to realize the simple fact that if he wants to continue to work in the gaming industry out side of blizzard he has to turn it around.
As it currently stands if he left Blizzard or was terminated today. I dont see another game company going with in 10miles of him.
He keeps digging his own hole deeper and deeper at this point instead of lashing out at everyone in the gaming community.
He needs to start sucking up and kissing butt. -
I think his apology is genuine. If I was the director of a project, especially one that took many years to complete, there would have to be some passion to keep the fire strong. While I agree with the criticisms of Dave about the game, I can appreciate the amount of work put into it. Even if the direction was not the one most would have liked to see it take, I would stand up for my team all the same. That is what being a leader is all about. At the same time, it is also about apologizing for your actions if the way you present yourself is less than dignified. This is the way he should have responded to Dave's criticism in the first place. It is, after all, their game now and while it does not live up to the standards of the original, there was a good deal of effort put into it and that should not be overlooked.Reply