Cliff Bleszinski Leaves Epic Games

Cliff Bleszinksi, design director at Epic Games, has officially left his position at the studio. His departure marks the loss of one of the company’s most influential designers, given Bleszinski’s work on classics like the Gears of War franchise and Bulletstorm, and as far back as projects like Jazz Jackrabbit (back when the company was under the name Epic MegaGames). He’s as respected for his work on the impressive Unreal Engine technology, which has grown to not only run Epic Games titles, but hundreds more over the years.

According to the studio, he’s off to “chart the next stage of his career.”

“In my 10 years of working with Cliff, his passion for creating video games of the highest quality has been unflinching,” mentioned Mike Capps, President of Epic Games.

“We are grateful for all of his hard work, and remain committed to making our fans happy and to always raising the bar in everything we do at Epic.”

Bleszinksi didn’t depart from his career of 20 years at Epic without leaving a formal letter for the gaming community and his colleagues:

“I’ve been doing this since I was a teenager, and outside of my sabbatical last year, I have been going non-stop. I literally grew up in this business, as Mike likes to say. And now that I’m grown up, it’s time for a much needed break.

I will miss the projects, the playtests, the debates, and most importantly, the people. Epic only hires the best of the best, and it has been a joy working with each and every one of you on a daily basis, whether you were hired weeks ago or decades ago. I have been fortunate enough to collaborate with a variety of disciplines, from code to art to marketing and PR – it’s been one big, rewarding learning experience. I’m confident that each project that is being built, whether at Epic, Chair, PCF, or Impossible will be top notch and will please gamers and critics alike.”

If you wish to follow Cliff on his future adventures, be sure to give him a follow on Twitter. So if you want to know a thing or two about how games are designed (and the man knows a damn thing or two about good game design) or just want to see where he heads next, he’s worth adding to your feed.

If you’re reading this Cliff, best of luck! Knock em’ dead (whoever “em’” may be)!