Andrew Greenberg

Name: Andrew Greenberg

Twitter: @hdiandrew

Gender: Male

Nationality: USA

Title: Executive Director

Company: Georgia Game Developers Association

Some games that you have worked on: 

Mall Tycoon

Fading Suns

Emperor of the Fading Suns

Star Trek: Starfleet Academy

Warhammer 40K: Final Liberation

Website: www.andrewgreenberg.com

1-What did motivate you to become a game developer? 

I was a reporter writing about lawyers, and got rather tired of that. I started writing about vampires, and found them a better class of people, and have just kept going.

2-What does inspire you creatively? 

The world around us is an endless source of inspiration. From political battles at the highest levels of power to the bizarre nature of human interaction, there is always something going on that can be a character, situation or game mechanic.

3-If you had unlimited resources to make any game you wanted, what kind of game would that be? 

One that really explored what is involved with accumulating and utilizing power, in a modern-day setting, with real-world sources.

4-What was the biggest challenge of your career? In which game? How did you overcome it? 

The biggest challenge was always in keeping a company going to turn out good games.It is an ongoing process that requires working with the best people you can, and ensuring that those relationships stay strong.

5-What do you usually do for raising the possibility of success in your projects? 

Get a good team.

6-What is the most helpful piece of constructive criticism you ever received? 

If things are not working, end them quickly and cleanly

7-What are the advantages/downsides to working in games?

The advantages are the endless opportunities for creativity. The downsides come from everything that pulls us away from those.

8-What is your best advice to a beginning game developer?

Start with something you know you can complete and build from there

9-Which skills are the most important for a game developer in your field/position?

Patience, an ability to interact well with others, and a knowledge of one's own limits (as well as a desire to raise them)

10-If I want to become a great dev in your field, what games should I play, what books should I read, and whose work should I follow?

All of them.

11-What changes do you want to see in the game industry?

Better communication between developers around the world.

Bonus: Tell us a funny story from your adventures in game development.

Very few are printable. At www.siegecon.net, I always find that the funniest and most enlightening game development discussions come at the Scotch tasting party ...