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Rob Pardo Leaving Blizzard Entertainment
Originally Posted by Rob Pardo (Blue Tracker / Official Forums)
Every ending is a beginning and today marks a new beginning for me.

After 17 years at Blizzard, with long and careful contemplation, I have made a difficult and bittersweet but ultimately exciting decision to pursue the next chapter in my life and career.

Before I even joined Blizzard, I was already a huge fan of the company and its games. In particular, I was extremely passionate about the emerging genre of real-time strategy games. It was a dream come true when I was given the opportunity to work on StarCraft, which at the time was being created by a very small team by today’s standards. It was tremendously fulfilling to get to know everyone on the team personally and to contribute our energies toward a shared goal in such a creative and engaging environment.

Blizzard Entertainment has been simply the best place in the world to be a game designer. The best aspect of designing games at Blizzard is that the entire company is passionate about the gameplay within each and every product. From the executive team to customer service to our global offices, every single person is a player and contributes to making the best possible games. It’s for very good reason that the first credit on every Blizzard game is “Game Design by Blizzard Entertainment.”

I’m really proud of the contributions I was able to make to Blizzard’s accomplishments. From building lasting games, to supporting the growth of eSports, to extending the Warcraft world into a feature film, and of course to being able to celebrate our shared passions with the Blizzard community online and at BlizzCon.

The Blizzard community is ultimately the reason why we come to work every day and pour our souls into every world and experience we create. Blizzard’s players are the most passionate in the world and your commitment and dedication are truly awesome to behold. Creating entertainment for you has been an incredible opportunity, and I know that you will continue to grow and become even stronger as a community over the years to come. It has been so meaningful on a personal level to help create joy for all of you.

I’m looking forward to new challenges in my career, but I will always cherish the time I spent with you all and the amazing and collaborative teams at Blizzard. It was both satisfying and humbling, and it made me a better developer and a better person. I look forward to playing Blizzard games as a player for many years to come. Most important, now I have plenty of time to learn how to build a competitive Hearthstone deck.

As to what I will be doing next, I don’t have an answer for you yet . . . but I will “when it’s ready.” My priorities are to enjoy the summer with my family, play plenty of games, and think about what’s next. The game industry is such an exciting place right now with PC gaming thriving, the new consoles, mobile games, and virtual reality becoming an actual reality. It’s like having an empty quest log and going into a new zone for the first time.

In the past, I haven’t been the most avid Twitter user, but I’ll strive to do better and keep you updated there—@Rob_Pardo. Please stay in touch!

Rob
This article was originally published in forum thread: Rob Pardo Leaving Blizzard Entertainment started by chaud View original post
Comments 591 Comments
  1. randomnamegenerator16's Avatar
    Quote Originally Posted by Protar View Post
    This is the article people are upset about: http://www.polygon.com/2014/5/22/574...zzard-nintendo
    Where do you see biggotry here?
  1. arandomuser's Avatar
    I thought guild wars 2 didnt have subs, and most of the people who they count as players probably bought the game played for a couple of weeks and left
  1. Malrune's Avatar
    Good, sexists like pardo need to know they're not allowed to simply dump their hatespeech online. Posting gaybashing or misogynistic comments SHOULD lead to termination from your job, possibly more depending on the victim.
  1. Queen of Hamsters's Avatar
    Quote Originally Posted by Yosemiteesam View Post
    Very true but After 10 years though and still around 7 million subs is still not bad by any means. Of course the the board members and big wigs are going to try many different things to suck all the money they can out of this franchise and get back more subs. But facts are that nothing last forever. I also find it funny when people say yes Blizz is losing subs because new content is scarce or it is not good. that might be true with some but lets be real here. It is a freaking game. Many people get bored after playing the same game all the time for years even if there is new content and it is good. I know many people that left the game mainly due to the fact they had life changes. I know many that have gotten married in that time, and have had kids and life really is just too busy for them to even indulge themselves in any MMO now. Ive known a few to come back that just play Hearthstone and Diablo in their spare time. They want to play WOW but don't have the time and cant justify paying monthly for something they really will never get far into anymore and even if WOW was free to play they would never get back to playing it the way they did in the past. They have also tried other MMO'S and enjoyed them but only stick around a few months at most and then realize they really don't have the time to put in to it to keep up with a lot of their friends that still play full time. But whatever happens with WOW in the future its been one hell of a run. I never really thought 10 years later they still have this many people playing. They could come out with the best expansion they ever had and they still are never going get back to where they were.
    Well said. It doesn't matter what they do, this game is NEVER reaching the same heights it once had. Time, more competition, people growing up and moving on...people can pretend as much as they like that the game would reach 12+ million subs again if only changes THEY want were made, but it's never going to happen.

    At least I know a few that are returning. They didn't feel motivated by Pandaland so decided to focus on other things, but WoD has them excited.
  1. Archaeon's Avatar
    Quote Originally Posted by Kickbuttmario View Post
    He must be heading to Anet because he knows Guild Wars 2 is the future. I mean, wow has been losing subs left right and center while Guild Wars 2 has been gaining subs non stop.
    People still play Guild Wars 2?
  1. Bathory's Avatar
    Quote Originally Posted by Kickbuttmario View Post
    Guild Wars 2 has been gaining subs non stop.
    Yep, soon they might even break 1million. THE FUTURE.
  1. pallyopness's Avatar
    Quote Originally Posted by Malrune View Post
    Good, sexists like pardo need to know they're not allowed to simply dump their hatespeech online. Posting gaybashing or misogynistic comments SHOULD lead to termination from your job, possibly more depending on the victim.
    LMFAO!!! Pardo, sir, you are THE MAN!!!!!! I wish you success in everything you do!!

    In all honesty the only people making a big deal out of this is the LBGT community themselves. It's a joke to overblow what he said. Gotta pretend theres an issue I guess. People bashing him for this speech should wake up to reality.......Blizzard wants to stay out of political correctness. They are a gaming company that is all that was said. Good lord these groups are a joke.
  1. Queen of Hamsters's Avatar
    Quote Originally Posted by Kickbuttmario View Post
    He must be heading to Anet because he knows Guild Wars 2 is the future. I mean, wow has been losing subs left right and center while Guild Wars 2 has been gaining subs non stop.
    If GW2 is the future of Mmos, then I'mma stick to single-players.

    Would love some data on that statement though.
  1. ro9ue's Avatar
    Quote Originally Posted by Protar View Post
    This is the article people are upset about: http://www.polygon.com/2014/5/22/574...zzard-nintendo

    And you know he's the lead creative designer of Blizzard. So bigotry is hardly unexpected given the state of female characters in their games.
    I agree with him 100%. Polygon is fucking scum for trying to ruin someone's reputation by spitting out that article. Fuck them. They also totally undermine the very real issue of sexuality in game development when they just toss this shit out for clicks. Again, fuck them.
  1. Kickbuttmario's Avatar
    Quote Originally Posted by det View Post
    GW2 has a sub fee? And where can we see the numbers that you seem to have? And if GW2 is the future, what about Wildstar? Same company. A massive assault to kill WoW? Or maybe GW 2 isn't really doing what it was supposed to do and that is why we now get Wildstar?

    Enlighten us
    Gw2 and Wildstar are made by different companies.
  1. Muneraven's Avatar
    When several top employees of a big company all leave in a fairly short period of time, something is going on. And it isn't usually good. My guess is that the powers-that-be want the company to go in a direction many of the original designers don't agree with, but that is nothing more than a guess.

    I do know I've seen more shoddy game design based on making money first rather than making a fun game first from Blizzard in the last three years than I've ever seen before . . .and they've been bad at it, mostly. Hearthstone is a niche game and the people who pay money to buy cards aren't going to stick with the game long. The D3 cash AH was a disaster. WoW's attempts to stretch content to save money have not been well received by many players.

    It may be that the designers who were good at making fun games are on the way out because that isn't the focus anymore. We're living in a Candy Crush world where dumb people blow a lot of money on games carefully rigged to trick players into opening their wallets. It isn't "If you build it, he will come" anymore. It isn't about just making something straight up amazing and letting the fun get customers. It's about seeing gamers as suckers now. . .dummies who don't see when they are being manipulated by game design. It's the worst thing ever to happen to gaming, IMHO.

    - - - Updated - - -
  1. Kickbuttmario's Avatar
    Quote Originally Posted by UnifiedDivide View Post
    They both have the same publisher is what I think det meant.
    Publishers don't matter. AT ALL. Whoever told you guys that are lying!
  1. bryroo's Avatar
    Quote Originally Posted by Mirishka View Post
    People take jobs, people quit jobs, people move on. Its called life.
    When people CEO level employees or major names in the industry leave jobs it has a much larger impact than someone who quits bagging groceries. It can sway public perception and even influence investment decisions.

    Dismissing it outright is foolish.
  1. ro9ue's Avatar
    Quote Originally Posted by Malrune View Post
    Good, sexists like pardo need to know they're not allowed to simply dump their hatespeech online. Posting gaybashing or misogynistic comments SHOULD lead to termination from your job, possibly more depending on the victim.
    You're straight up a fucking moron if you think what he said was in any way sexist or misogynistic. People like you throw those words around like the boy who cried wolf and it undermines REAL problems of misogyny.
  1. pallyopness's Avatar
    Quote Originally Posted by ro9ue View Post
    You're straight up a fucking moron if you think what he said was in any way sexist or misogynistic. People like you throw those words around like the boy who cried wolf and it undermines REAL problems of misogyny.
    Its amazing how far people try to reach to create issues that don't exist.
  1. Queen of Hamsters's Avatar
    Quote Originally Posted by Muneraven View Post
    When several top employees of a big company all leave in a fairly short period of time, something is going on. And it isn't usually good. My guess is that the powers-that-be want the company to go in a direction many of the original designers don't agree with, but that is nothing more than a guess.

    I do know I've seen more shoddy game design based on making money first rather than making a fun game first from Blizzard in the last three years than I've ever seen before . . .and they've been bad at it, mostly. Hearthstone is a niche game and the people who pay money to buy cards aren't going to stick with the game long. The D3 cash AH was a disaster. WoW's attempts to stretch content to save money have not been well received by many players.

    It may be that the designers who were good at making fun games are on the way out because that isn't the focus anymore. We're living in a Candy Crush world where dumb people blow a lot of money on games carefully rigged to trick players into opening their wallets. It isn't "If you build it, he will come" anymore. It isn't about just making something straight up amazing and letting the fun get customers. It's about seeing gamers as suckers now. . .dummies who don't see when they are being manipulated by game design. It's the worst thing ever to happen to gaming, IMHO.

    - - - Updated - - -
    Sure is funny how people live in different realities.

    I recognize NOTHING of what you just ranted. So many people simply play when they have fun and stop when they don't, nothing else.

    - - - Updated - - -

    Quote Originally Posted by pallyopness View Post
    Its amazing how far people try to reach to create issues that don't exist.
    Indeed, I blame it on people being bored...perhaps from running out of games to have fun with due to their own preferences not matching what the entire market is providing.
  1. chrisorie4's Avatar
    He's leaving a sinking ship while there are still rafts to get by. Good call.
  1. Googolplex's Avatar
    Who is 'Rob Pardo and why would I care that he is leaving Blizzard ? Don't bother aswering, I don't care, and I am tired of these pointless 'goodbye' threads. I am more interested in people joining Blizzard, now that would actually be interesting...
  1. mmoc52fe769775's Avatar
    Not gonna lie, don't know who he is. Oh dear?
  1. Arbs's Avatar
    Quote Originally Posted by Kickbuttmario View Post
    He must be heading to Anet because he knows Guild Wars 2 is the future. I mean, wow has been losing subs left right and center while Guild Wars 2 has been gaining subs non stop.
    Uhh I'm not sure if your aware, but GW2 has no sub. An you can't use sales a definitive number of the playerbase.

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