In an exclusive 12-page article in the latest issue of Retro Gamer, EA founder Trip Hawkins not only explains why the console was ahead of its time, but also candidly reveals how 3DO lost out to the power of PlayStation and Sony.
It’s a fantastic, incredibly frank interview that will make you reconsider your thoughts on the 20-year old console.
He talks intimately about Electronic Arts telling us, “It just really felt like 3DO got prematurely stabbed in the back”, with regards to EA’s move to PlayStation. And also reveals to us how Peter Molyneux was initially involved in 3DO’s early plans.
There’s also news of a partnership with Sony, with Trip revealing that, “they decided of course to bring their own product to market. That was a disappointment and it turned out to be fatal because Sony became the big success and Sony’s performance is what killed off the 3DO”.
In addition to our incredible 3DO feature, we also interview plenty of other classic developers, and delve behind the scenes of a number of classic videogames.
Brain Baglow and Alan Campbell revisit DMA Design’s groundbreaking Grand Theft Auto III and discuss creating the game-changing 3D world, while Bitmap Brothers co-founder Mike Montgomery explains the creation of 16-bit run-and-gun The Chaos Engine.
We also speak to Dusko Dimitrijevic about his superb isometric 8-bit game Movie.
Additional highlights include the ultimate guide to Capcom’s huge coin-op hit Forgotten Worlds, a detailed look at 10 Commodore 64 games that were announced in various magazines, but never reached completion and all the additional levels that were never included in the original Jet Set Willy.
Trip Hawkins speaks to Retro Gamer – you can read the full article in issue 122, on sale now from newsagents and ImagineShop for £4.99.
You can also buy the digital version from greatdigitalmags.com.