You hopefully already know this, but a lot of the truly interesting stuff about games development (and game developers) comes not from the PR-managed machine of an upcoming title, but by scouring the medium’s past. Example: the following story about NBA Jam creator Mark Turmell.
When Mark Turmell – the lead designer and programmer on the original NBA Jam – came to EA Sports’ reboot, he brought a list of 60 things the team needed to get right to make a true Jam.