ZeniMax Online Studios has announced that president Matt Firor will be leaving the company later this month, as announced on Twitter. With Firor stepping away from the company, his leadership role will be taken up by the new studio head, Jo Burba, as well as Susan Kath as EP and game director Rich Lambert.
“After more than 18 years leading ZeniMax Online Studios, I’ll be stepping away later this month,” wrote Firor in a social media update. “The studio and The Elder Scrolls Online will be in great hands under the direction of new Studio Head, Jo Burba along with Executive Producer, Susan Kath and Game Director, Rich Lambert. Together, this leadership team has spearheaded many of ESO’s biggest ideas and expansions and will continue to make this game something we’re all proud of.”
“While I won’t be working on the game anymore, I will be cheering you on and adding to the thousands of hours I’ve already spent in-game. There are many more stories to be told, adventures to be had, and I know this amazing community will carry that shared legacy and success forwards.”
Along with Firor, veteran members of the development team at Rare are also reportedly leaving the company. According to VGC, one of the most veteran game designers of the studio – Gregg Mayles – is leaving. The departure of Mayles would mark the end of a career spanning more than 3 decades at the studio.
During his time at Rare, Mayles had worked on quite a few games since 1990, with Solar Jetman being the first title he was credited for. Since then, he had worked on several major titles in the studio’s history, including Donkey Kong Country, Banjo-Kazooie, and Viva Pinata, among others.
Along with Mayles, who had been working on Everwild since 2021, executive producer Louise O’Connor is also leaving the company. O’Connor had been working at Rare since 2001 Nintendo 64 title Conker’s Bad Fur Day.
Reports of Everwild’s cancellation came about yesterday. An internal email by Xbox’s Matt Booty (obtained by Windows Central) confirmed the same along with announcing that Microsoft is shutting down The Initiative.
“We have made the decision to stop development of Perfect Dark and Everwild as well as wind down several unannounced projects across our portfolio,” wrote Booty. “As part of this, we are closing one of our studios, The Initiative. These decisions, along with other changes across our teams, reflect a broader effort to adjust priorities and focus resources to set up our teams for greater success within a changing industry landscape.
“We did not make these choices lightly, as each project and team represent years of effort, imagination, and commitment.”
Microsoft has also been going through some major lay-offs. Check out details behind the tensions at Halo Studios in light of the lay-offs here.
