The news that Cliff Bleszinski is leaving Epic after 20 years is another significant departure from the video game industry, and it has tongues wagging. Recently, Bioware co-founders Ray Muzyka and Greg Zeschuk announced they would also be leaving the industry. And, these are only three of the recent high profile departures.

It is difficult to say if this is a trend, or whether it could be that after working 20 years in the video game industry with its high pressure and demanding deadlines, that people just need a break. While it seems that most who depart say they want to do something different, is that the true reason for the motivation and the reason behind the decision? Perhaps the idea of finding a new and different challenge is a better way of explaining it.

We don’t know what the impact will be and only time will tell. What we do know is that these will not be the last that depart, and their departure will give rise to new names to step into the industry.  But they will not be easy to replace, as many of these figures have become icons in the video game industry. We can only hope that after they take a break the draw of the industry will be so strong that they will decide to return in some significant way.

For right now, we say so long; and know that your contributions to this industry will not be forgotten.