The former composer of Destiny and Halo, Marty O’Donnell, speaks in an interview about working in large teams.
Marty O’Donnell is responsible for the soundtrack to Destiny and many Halo titles, having worked for Bungie for many years. His departure and subsequent legal dispute with Bungie caused quite a stir among fans.
In an interview with Playboy, O’Donnell and his partner Jaime Griesemer discuss their new project, Haywire Studios, and the VR game Golem. Griesemer is also a Bungie veteran, having been the Design Lead for Halo 2.
The interview does not directly address Bungie, Destiny, or the reasons for the public dispute between O’Donnell and Bungie/Activision, but it does provide insights into what daily life in a game studio is like and the conflicts that arise from working for a giant like Activision in a huge team.
Activision’s unwillingness to release this soundtrack as a standalone work contributed to the rift between O’Donnell and Bungie:
O’Donnell seems especially troubled by 3 things about working in a large studio:
A large studio has many power struggles and intrigues
Everything becomes impersonal. During Halo 2’s time, someone asked him how many people were working on the game, and he could visualize the office, counting how many people were sitting at each desk, coming up to 67. That was the last time he could count like that. In the end, only 9 people worked directly for him in the audio team. In the new studio, that’s the total number of employees.
Griesemer adds: When so many people work on a project, it often becomes more about power and the right to make decisions rather than actually making good decisions.
In large projects, the individual often remains anonymous
What O’Donnell further dislikes is the trend of large publishers like EA or Activision trying to keep developers anonymous and denying them recognition. This really annoys O’Donnell. After all, people do not look forward to the next “EA game”; they like a developer because they made something great.
People like Spielberg or Woody Allen have entire teams around them. They appreciate their team. Companies like EA or Activision lack the emotional connection to the brands. Yet the team is so important. Ultimately, it is always the team, not an individual, that is responsible for the success of something.
One’s own ideas often get sidelined
The third thing that seems to weigh heavily on Marty O’Donnell is the lack of freedom in a large studio. You constantly have to wait for approval to do something the way you want to do it.
Often, creative and talented experts stand idly by, waiting for someone to give them permission to do things as they see fit.
It is even worse when you finally have the opportunity to present your idea that you have worked on for so long, only to hear, “Yes, that won’t work.” Or when something is accepted but later rejected.
The core points of contention as to why O’Donnell left Bungie after so many years have been highlighted in this article.
- Destiny: Legal dispute provides insights into development history – 5 parts planned, postponed twice
Mein MMO says: Even back then, the impression was that O’Donnell felt less valued and respected in the new huge Bungie under Activision compared to the “old Bungie times.” The soundtrack he recorded with Paul McCartney and an orchestra seemed to matter a lot to him. He really wanted to release it as a standalone work. However, Activision seemed to block that.
When Activision did not use O’Donnell’s music for Destiny trailers but instead used its own, it triggered a chain reaction that ultimately led to his departure.
Besides personal recognition, it seems O’Donnell also missed camaraderie and connection in a small studio. It seems he has now found both again.
