Former Microsoft executive Ed Fries says that Steve Jobs was angry with Microsoft when it acquired Bungie Software, makers of Halo.
“He was mad at [Microsoft CEO Steve] Ballmer and phoned him up and was angry because we’d just bought the premier Mac game developer and made them an Xbox developer.”
Fries recounts that Jobs made a heated call to Microsoft’s Steve Ballmer following Microsoft’s acquisition of Bungie, then well-known as a Mac-friendly game company behind hits including the Marathon and Myth series, as well as Oni. Halo had then been in development for both Mac and Windows and had even been featured on the keynote stage of a Macworld Expo.
Following Microsoft’s acquisition of Bungie, Halo became a showcase title for the then-fledgling Xbox console. Destineer Studios would eventually publish Halo for the Mac – something that Fries takes partial credit for as well. Read on for details.
Steve Jobs ‘raged at Microsoft’ over game studio sale [Develop]