BioWare co-founders retire

Greg Zeschuk and Ray Muzyka, co-founders of one of the most influential and iconic development studios in the industry, BioWare Games, have announced their retirement from the company, and their respective moves away from the gaming industry as a whole.

Zeschuk and Muzyka, both qualified medical doctors with a keen interest in programming and computer games, used their success in the medical field to pool money and found BioWare in 1995. The company’s list of critically lauded games is impressive, including the likes of Baldur’s Gate I & II, Neverwinter Nights, Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic, the Mass Effect series, and the Dragon Age series.

BioWare was acquired by Electronic Arts in 2007, and the company has grown to include 6 studios.

Muzyka and Zeschuk explained their decisions in separate posts on the BioWare blog.

An abridged version of Ray Muzyka ‘s post below:

“After nearly two decades in videogames, I’ve decided to move on to pursue an entirely different set of challenges. This has been an incredibly difficult decision to make; after thinking about it for many months, I made the decision to retire from videogames back in early April 2012 – at that time I provided six months’ notice to EA, to help enable a solid transition for my teams at BioWare.

“I feel the need now to move on to a new chapter in my career. With the growth of BioWare to multiple locations as part of a public company, following two decades of multiple successful product launches across many platforms and business models, I’ve largely personally achieved what I wanted in videogames; I now desire to take on a brand new entrepreneurial challenge.

“I believe strongly in the power of free enterprise to enable sustainable change, so my next ‘chapter’ will likely focus on an entirely new industry, something exciting, different and frankly downright scary – investing in and mentoring new entrepreneurs, and more specifically, the field of social/impact investing.

“I remain passionate about video games – they’ll definitely remain one of my favorite hobbies. I see tremendous opportunity ahead for BioWare and its parent company Electronic Arts. Frankly, I’m quite excited by the thought of being able to play the next generation of BioWare games purely as a fan!”

Ray Muzyka

Muzyka went on to express his faith in the team he helped to build at BioWare, and parent company EA to take the business forward. He signed off with thanks to the loyal BioWare fans, and his many friends and partners in the industry, including of course Greg Zeschuk.

Zeschuk echoed the sentiments of Muzyka, reminiscing on two decades of success at BioWare, and discussing the company culture which he believes will carry BioWare forward into this new era. An abridged version of Greg Zeschuk’s post below:

“After nearly twenty years working at BioWare I’ve decided it’s time to move on and pursue something new. This decision isn’t without significant pain and regret, but it’s also something I know I need to do, for myself and my family. I’ve 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.

At BioWare we’ve always valued the effort of the team, as well as the herculean efforts of passionate individuals. I’ve had the privilege of working with some of the best people in the games business; some of them are well known, and some are not. What every single one of them does is commit himself or herself fully to the act of doing great work, whatever it is, and then stubbornly pursues the goal until it is achieved. The amazing thing about working at BioWare is that everyone does this; it is part of the culture we helped foster and grow.

“BioWare’s foundation in its Core Values, passion and professionalism remains in the very fiber of the company. One thing I’m confident of is that we’ve built a great team that will continue to succeed long after I’m gone. The thing I’m most proud of is the success of people that we’ve help grow over the years; I hope all of them exceed anything I’ve ever done and eclipse our achievements. I have full confidence in the current leadership team guiding BioWare to continued future success.

“I’d also like to thank the fans that have supported us across so many games over the decades we’ve been plying our craft. One of my favorite experiences is hearing from people about how much they’ve enjoyed a recent release or BioWare classic; it seems to happen all the time so clearly we’ve had an impact. Sure we’ve had our disagreements with the fans (and them with us), but frankly I understand how that’s driven by passion and love of the games. It’s exhilarating to consider how many lives we’ve touched with the entertainment we’ve created over the last 20 years.

“Some of you will be curious what I’ll be doing next, and I can state that I’m not going to be working in games for a while, and there’s a strong possibility that I won’t be back. 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. The main project I will be working on is a web-based interview show called The Beer Diaries where I interview notable brewers and showcase their beers.”

Greg Zeschuk

Aaryn Flynn, GM for BioWare Edmonton and Montreal studios, stepped up to reassure fans.

“I know this might be concerning for some of you but the leaders at BioWare have had some time to think about it – to think about how the games, the fans, and the creative teams would move on without the two guys who started this organization back in 1995. We – including Ray and Greg – think the studio is solid and the team here is ready to embark on a whole new era of games. Ray and Greg have been well-recognized for their creative achievements but their greatest legacy will be the culture and leadership team they built at BioWare.

Flynn spoke about his 12 years with the company thus far:

“In that time, I’ve seen our studio culture grow, change, evolve – especially now that we’re part of EA. What hasn’t changed is our cohesive spirit that binds us as a team. It starts with a passion for creating the very best games; it demands a deep commitment to respecting and listening to our players; it includes ongoing recognition that great games require skilled and dedicated people; and above all, it requires incredible integrity – integrity that spans across our games, our relationships with players, and our commitments to each other.

Love of games, respect for the players, teamwork and integrity – those are the hallmarks of a culture built by Ray and Greg. It started in their hearts and minds, ran through their daily actions, and resonated deeply in the people that joined them in their remarkable journey. And now with their retirement, the creative teams at BioWare Edmonton & Montreal are ready to carry on that legacy.

Flynn continued his post by outlining the current projects in the works at BioWare, including the just-announced Dragon Age III: Inquisition, and a new entry into the Mass Effect series. You can read more about those developments here: New Mass Effect already in development, BioWare confirms