Methos: Give us a brief history of Scott Miller prior to joining Apogee Software.

Scott: I wrote professional for several nation computer game publications, wrote a weekly game column for The Dallas Morning news, developed over 20 small PC games that were commercially published, and worked in the arcade industry.

Methos: Prior to the release of Duke Nukem 3D, Apogee Software seemed to be in a bit of disarray or what some people might call "a transitional period". Can you relate to us what had to be done to make it continue in a more successful direction?

Scott: I founded Apogee in 1987. I'm not sure what you mean by "transitional period", if you mean losing developers then that happens for all development companies that have been around as long as we have. We hire talented people many of whom eventually decide to start their own company. This is partly how the Dallas-area game developer community has grown so much, through developers leaving Apogee and id Software. It's all a natural and expected process, yet is always highly reported. I'm sure Microsoft loses a dozen people each week, so why doesn't that make news?  ;)

Methos: Of the original plans you had for Apogee, how many of these actually came to fruition? Was it a tough haul getting through all the growing pains?

Scott: My original goal for Apogee was to create lower-budget, action oriented PC games.  Of course we've grown considerable, and released many big and groundbreaking hits, including the original Duke Nukem, Commander Keen, Raptor, Wolfenstein 3-D, Terminal Velocity and Duke Nukem, plus many other games (Balls of Steel, Death Rally, Stargunner, Shadow Warrior) that we're very proud of.

Methos: Many companies jumped on the "first person shooter" bandwagon trying to copy the incredible success of Doom / Doom 2. While most were less than successful, Duke Nukem 3D was a hugely successful title for Apogee. What made  Duke 3D the great hit that it was? How did it rise so far above the rest?

Scott: Duke 3D was quite innovative, and offered many new things that gamers had never seen before, like the action hero talking, interactive environments, a game editor, and real-life settings.

Methos: Are you a games fan like most people in the industry? If so, what are some of the games available that impress you the most and can you explain what makes them so appealing to you?

Scott: Of course I'm a games fan!  I'm mostly an action gamer, and I like games that are quick to learn and offer immediate enjoyment, so I like 3D shooters, real-time strategy games, and many others.  I never play sports games, though.

Methos: What plans do you have for the future of 3D Realms? What can we expect to see?

Scott: You can expect to see Duke Nukem Forever and Prey, both of which we think will be groundbreaking games.

Scott Miller
Head of Apogee Software, Ltd.
http://www.apogee1.com