Peter Moore did what jaded Sonic fans wanted to do

[Ngangbius]

Which was saying "Fuck you" to Yuji Naka.

In an interview featured in the latest issue of men's magazine Esquire, former Xbox 360 top man Peter Moore recalls how he once lost his cool and said "F*** you!" to Sega dev and Sonic creator, Yuji Naka. The boardroom bust-up happened as the Dreamcast's fortunes were plummeting in the face of competition from PlayStation 2.

Moore - who helped launch Sega's ill-fated machine and was working for the company at the time - wanted to find out how consumers perceived Sega compared with other games companies. He gathered a focus group of twentysomethings and asked "If these brands were people, who would they be?" Apparently, Sega turned out to be the "granddad with dementia who used to be cool but you couldn't remember why."

Moore had tapes of the focus group dubbed in Japanese and headed to Tokyo to report the doddering image of Sega to the company's board. However, when he arrived, Yuji Naka - who Moore describes as being "a tad conceited" - accused Moore of tampering with the dialogue. "I lost it," remembers Moore. "I turned to the interpreter and said, 'Tell him, "F*** you"."

Although the translator refused to convey Moore's feelings, he was pretty sure that his message got across. "Naka had lived in the US for three years, so I knew he understood. I walked out and never returned." What a badass.

Oh, and if you're curious, Moore also reveals that the focus group thought Rockstar was the "drunken uncle who'd show up with a hooker from Vegas". And EA - who Moore works for now - was considered to be "the high-school quarter back who always got the cheerleader - an arrogant son of a bitch."

Source: Gamesradar

Dang, I know I probably would have lost my cool too if I was in the same position as Moore though I wouldn't have give the same response. I wish I was at that board meeting when it happened just to look at all the shocked faces. Heh.

[G.Silver]

I read this on Kotaku but it was really just the choiciest bits, now that I've read more I'm a little more offended on the SoJ side of things.

"If these brands were people, who would they be?"

Ok, for one thing, who considers something like that meaningful business input? Seriously?

tapes of the focus group dubbed in Japanese

What the hell? Does anyone think that is as strange as I do?

Aside from just being a weird waste of money, it's one thing to have one translator convert the statements of a focus group, it's something altogether different to have unrelated persons then give a vocal performance of the statements in another language. It sounds less like business research and more like entertaininment, as if Moore put together some kind of console manufacturer "roast," translated it, and then showed it to a bunch of suits who already aren't happy with how sales are going in his country. Without more facts, it sounds like Moore was being an asshole.

[RocketPunch]

"If these brands were people, who would they be?"

Ok, for one thing, who considers something like that meaningful business input? Seriously?

It's a slightly offbeat way of doing market research but I can kind of understand why they did it. I guess if you know how people view your brand, it would be easier to take steps to change that view, and create the type of image you want.

This is a good story, but I'm interested in where it went. Was there a Naka/Moore grudge match in the boardroom? Did Naka rock Moore's world after he said that? etc

[FlashTHD]

Without more facts, it sounds like Moore was being an asshole.

Exactly.

He must think this is a lovely hysterical old story, why else would he brag about it now - certainly not just to fire up the dedicated Naka haters, but those are the only people this benefits. I never clearly understood why he was fired when he was 'til I read this. While both of them conducted themselves poorly in that little exchange, i'm sympathetic to Naka since his reaction doesn't sound entirely unreasonable (I don't know if i'd taken it to the level of accusations) and for all the tales of his pompousness, not in one of them have I heard him directly telling another employee to fuck off.

(Or was that Bernie Stolar who got fired? I'm thinking of somebody who got canned the day before the US Dreamcast launch...)

At any rate i'm of half a mind to ask for this thread locked since all this is doing is enabling his ego.

[Protodude]

Bernie Stolar was the one who was fired a day before the Dreamcast launch. I think Moore just left of his own accord.

[DackAttac]

Those personifications are pretty dead-on.