Today, 17 years after founding the company , BioWare founders Ray Muzyka and Greg Zeschuk have announced they are retiring from the games industry. Muzyka states that he informed EA, who bought the company five years ago, in April of his decision and has used the interim six month period to help with the transition.
Both Muzyka and Zeschuk have written lengthy blog posts explaining the reasons for their departure. Ray had this to say: “The decision to leave the videogame industry is hard to explain, but essentially I feel similar now to how I felt in the early days of BioWare over the decade post-medical school, while I was still practicing as an ER physician, back when I first realized that the world of video games was my next career ‘chapter’. Two wonderful decades working at BioWare and later EA was the result of that decision. It’s not often that you can truly say you were able to pursue and achieve your dream job; I know how lucky I am to be able to say that now, in my early 40s.”
He rounded out his post by adding he is “humbled by the thought that I helped played a role, however small, in the successful evolution of the videogame industry which I still love so much.”
Zeschuk’s post is a slightly more somber affair, as he explains he has “reached an unexpected point in my life where I no longer have the passion that I once did for the company, for the games, and for the challenge of creation.” He does add that “For the people I have had the privilege of working with, however, my passion burns as brightly as it did the day we started.”
Though Muzyka doesn’t give any hints as to what he hopes to do next, Zeschuk had this to say: “After my departure I’m going to be spending significant time with family and friends, as well as pursuing some personal passion-driven projects related to craft beer.”
Image courtesy: Jacob Kepler