Casey Hudson, project director on games like Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic and the whole friggin' Mass Effect series, has left BioWare. Most recently he was heading up a new series for the role-playing powerhouse. Damn.
Hudson explained his decision in a farewell post on BioWare's blog:
"After what already feels like a lifetime of extraordinary experiences, I have decided to hit the reset button and move on from BioWare. I’ll take a much needed break, get perspective on what I really want to do with the next phase of my life, and eventually, take on a new set of challenges."
"Though there’s never an easy time to make a change like this, I believe this is the best time for it. The foundation of our new IP in Edmonton is complete, and the team is ready to move forward into pre-production on a title that I think will redefine interactive entertainment. Development for the next Mass Effect game is well underway, with stunning assets and playable builds that prove the team is ready to deliver the best Mass Effect experience to date. And the Dragon Age: Inquisition team is putting the final touches on a truly ambitious title with some of the most beautiful visuals I’ve seen in a game."
"But while I feel that the time has come, this is without a doubt the most difficult decision of my career. BioWare is as magical a place today as it was when I started. The projects we are working on are some of the most exciting and prestigious in the world. The talent in our teams is second to none. And the people here are some of my closest friends. I’ve spent more time with many of you than my own family, and I have enjoyed every day of it.”
Just two months ago at E3, Hudson had been offering gamers a hint of the bold new universe he was creating for BioWare at the company's Edmonton HQ. You can see for yourself at about 1:15 of this clip:
The timing of Hudson's is slightly strange, given that BioWare seems to be right on the cusp of revealing what is, presumably, the new universe Hudson put so much work into a new universe;. The company's released a series of teasers declaring "YOU'VE BEEN CHOSEN" and showing cryptic visuals like:
BioWare is holding a "special fan event" during Gamescom in Germany next week. There, the developer will, in all likelihood, take the wraps off its wild, weird new world.
Hudson was also serving as executive producer on the new Mass Effect, which BioWare recently talked a bit about at Comic-Con.
NOTE: This post originally speculated that BioWare's next game, set for reveal at Germany's Gamescom event, was going to be Hudson's project. It is not. That detail was confirmed late last month when BioWare boss Aaryn Flynn revealed that the mystery Gamescom project was not being developed by BioWare's Canadian studios. We apologize for the error and have updated this article with E3 2014 video of Hudson talking about his new Edmonton-developed project.