Blizzard’s Former Heads Talk About What They Have Cooking At Magic Soup Games
Three former heads for Blizzard Entertainment have now formed a new game company, Magic Soup Games.
The three heads are J. Allen Brack, John Donham, and Jen Oneal, respectively. Oneal serves as the company’s CEO. They say they are a team of five, and they refer to each other as chefs. In Jen’s words:
“Everyone who is a part of Magic Soup is referred to as a chef as a sign of respect for their skill and discipline. And we’re a startup, we’re all washing dishes!”
In an interview with VentureBeat, the three shared details about the company, but also spoke up a bit about their experience in Blizzard.
All three are veteran developers and game executives who were at top positions at Blizzard when it first reckoned with inclusion and diversity issues.
As recapped by GameSpot, J. Allen Brack was president when the company dealt with a harassment and discrimination lawsuit. He left the company, and Jen Oneal took his position alongside Mike Ybarra. However, Jen herself left after three months with her own issues with Blizzard. John Donham was chief of staff and vice president of special projects for one year from 2019 to 2020.
These details matter because the three kept in touch after leaving Blizzard and found, not only that they still had something to give in the industry, but their vision was going in the same direction.
J Allen Brack shares this story:
“I remember Jen and I having dinner about a year ago. When the night was wrapping up, we got into a conversation about what we wanted to build next. When I put my No. 1 game idea on the table, and Jen put her No. 1 game idea on the table, it was essentially the same game. We both sat back in our chairs, not saying a lot, just thinking. We didn’t know then but that was actually
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