Management Changes Hit Crystal Dynamics
By Derek Nichols 26 December 2015
Square Enix announces that Darrell Gallagher, head of product development and Western Studios, is leaving the company and reveals new studio heads at Crystal Dynamics.
Big changes are coming to Square Enix and Crystal Dynamics as it was revealed earlier today that current head of product development and Western Studios, Darrell Gallagher, is moving on from the company after more than 10 years of service there. Prior to his current position, Gallagher was the studio head at Crystal Dynamics and worked on a number of Tomb Raider games including both well received recent entries. Currently, there is no word on what Gallagher has lined up next.
The news comes from Square Enix West CEO Phil Rogers, who revealed the departure in a statement on the Tomb Raider Tumblr site.
“Today Darrell Gallagher announced that he is moving on from Square Enix at the end of this year. Darrell became head of Crystal Dynamics back in 2009, led that studio to reboot the Tomb Raider franchise, and for the last 3 years he has led our western studios. I want to thank him for his tremendous effort and contribution to Square Enix, along with the amazing entertainment he has helped create. I am sad to see him go but respect his decision and we should all celebrate the sheer blood, sweat and tears he has put into our company over the last 10 years! We are excited for him and his family on their next chapter. We wish them the best of luck in the future.”
While Gallagher may be best known for his work at Crystal Dynamics, as head of product development and Western Studios for Square Enix, he oversaw and helped work on many recently released games like Just Cause 3, Life Is Strange, and a few upcoming 2016 titles such as Hitman and Deus Ex: Mankind Divided. At this time, Square Enix has not revealed who will be filling that open position.
In other leadership changes, Square Enix has also announced that Scot Amos and Ron Rosenberg are stepping in as co-studio heads at Crystal Dynamics. Both men are seasoned veterans at the studio, and have well over 20 years of experience working in the games industry. The pair worked on the 2013 Tomb Raider reboot title, while Rosenberg also championed the smaller downloadable titles like Lara Croft & The Guardian of Light.
Crystal Dynamics last title, Rise of the Tomb Raider recently launched alongside Fallout 4 last month. While the reviews were stellar, reports have indicated that the game may not have sold as well as expected. Official numbers have not been released, but the title appears to be coming to PC players later in January followed by PS4 players much later in 2016 so it’s a game that does have legs and should rebound nicely.
If you’re someone who’s played Rise of the Tomb Raider, what do you think? Is it worth the hype and praise that it has gotten so far? Let us know your thoughts below in the comments.
Rise of the Tomb Raider is now available for Xbox One and rumored to be arriving for PC players on January 29, 2016.
Source: Tomb Raider Tumblr
