Peter Molyneux: "Phil Spencer is one of the best people I've ever worked with"

Today, Peter Molyneux may not be a name immediately associated with quality, but the fact is that he has delivered several truly classic games over the years, not least the Fable series. In 2009, three years after his studio Lionhead was acquired by Microsoft, he was also promoted to European creative director of Microsoft Game Studios, and he had a lot to do with a then lesser-known colleague named Phil Spencer.

Today, Spencer is head of Microsoft's entire gaming division, and most of us probably have an opinion of him. But what is he like in private, behind the scenes? Molyneux comments on this in an interview with Edge Magazine (thanks, GamesRadar), where he talks about his meetings with Spencer almost 20 years ago:

"He's one of the best people I've ever worked with. I'm not saying this to butter him up - he's someone that absolutely loves the game industry, and is unbelievably smart.

"But he's worked at Microsoft his whole life. Phil used to work out of the Lionhead offices, so we spent a lot of time working together. And he said, 'You know, Peter, I'd really love to use your talents a bit more widely at Microsoft.'"

Molyneux became head of Europe, and it seems that the experience was something he values highly:

"Now, I am someone who is absolutely motivated by praise, so when he said, 'We want to make you a Microsoft partner, I thought: Fantastic they really like me!' It's just going back to school, this kid wanting to be liked, really - that's what it all comes down to. So I let myself forget how awful it had been, being [senior vice president] at EA."

Today, Molyneux is primarily an indie developer, currently working on his upcoming Masters of Albion. His time in the spotlight may be over, but he remains an interesting figure with a very unique perspective on the concept of gaming.