"We're almost there": Molyneux on games as the "dominant entertainment medium"
Peter Molyneux, the creator of Fable, Populous, Dungeon Keeper, Theme Hospital and many other much-loved titles, still loves and believes in video games.
Video games have almost arrived at their long-promised potential, Molyneux said at a recent event.
Speaking to an industry audience at Reboot, as reported by GamesIndustry, Molyneux discussed his passion for the medium.
"You may think Curiosity was a stupid idea, but I'll tell you what. When it ended it was the number one trending global topic on Twitter. How cool is that?" he said.
"All it was was 'What's inside the f**king box!' Can you imagine how that felt?
"For me, that's what this industry is. We've spent 20 years creating something that Sir Clive Sinclair said would become the dominant entertainment medium. We're almost there.
"Now is the time we have to show the world that they don't need to be anaesthetised by the deluge of rubbish from TV and film, because they can be involved. They can solve puzzles, create things, they can feel good about themselves. That's why I love what I do."
Elsewhere in his presentation Molyneux referenced the excitement he feels about games, commenting that recruiters make a mistake by highlighting experience over the passion and drive of new developers. He also touched on the subject of his infamous tendency to over-promise, telling - yet again - the story of the Fable acorn.
"The mistake I made, and I've made it again and again and again, and if I ever do this again I'll probably still make it, the mistake I made is to go and talk to the press about my current ideas," he said.
"From the iterative development side, the current idea seems like the most exciting thing ever. It seems like it will fit, but sometimes you have to throw it away."
Molyneux has withdrawn a bit from the public world of gaming, which is a shame, as he's good entertainment value. A few months ago, Eurogamer ran a piece revealing the disappointingly slow delivery of Curiosity winner Brian Henderson's prizes. In follow-up interviews with The Guardian and Rock, Paper, Shotgun, Molyneux declared he would stop speaking to the press. He continues to make appearances at trade events, obviously, which is a blessing.
Molyneux is currently working on a new project called The Trail.