Well, people are the heart of creative companies. As you may be well aware, some people have left Blizzard during the last year. These people include:
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PATRICK WYATT
Patrick Wyatt was previously Blizzard Entertainment's Vice President of Research and Development. He was most recently the team lead and lead programmer of Battle.net. Previously, Pat was a senior programmer on both StarCraft and Diablo, and wrote the multiplayer code for both games. He was also a producer and senior programmer on Warcraft II, for which he wrote both the networking and multiplayer code, and producer and lead programmer for Warcraft I. Pat also worked on Lost Vikings, Battle Chess, Rock and Roll Racing, Death and Return of Superman, and Justice League Task Force. Pat was employed at Blizzard more than eight years.
MIKE O'BRIEN
Mike O'Brien was also a company director of Blizzard, where he worked for four and one-half years. He was most recently the team lead and lead programmer of Warcraft III, and personally developed the game's 3D rendering engine. Mike was the original creator and architect of Battle.net and was lead programmer on that project. He was also a senior programmer on StarCraft and Diablo, as well as the author of the network code for both games, and was a programmer on Warcraft II. Mike was featured as one of the 25 most influential people in the game industry in PC Gamer's September 1999 cover story, "Game Gods."
JEFF STRAIN
Jeff Strain was the team lead and lead programmer of Blizzard's massively multiplayer role-playing game, World of Warcraft. He was also a senior programmer on both Warcraft III and StarCraft, and a programmer on Diablo. Jeff was the creator of the StarCraft Campaign Editor and was employed at Blizzard for four years.
DAVID BREVIK
David Brevik has been in the games industry for over twelve years, starting his career as Lead Technical Director at Iguana Entertainment before leaving in 1993 to form Condor, Inc. He spent the last seven years as both President for Blizzard North and as a Director of Blizzard Entertainment where, as a member of numerous internal and external project oversight teams, he brought a unique vision and understanding of design and technology to Blizzard's games. At the time of his departure from Blizzard Entertainment, David was a Project Lead and Designer on an unannounced project at Blizzard North.
David was a Project Lead, Design Lead and Lead Programmer on Diablo and Diablo II. Brevik also played an important role in the initial and iterative structural design of Blizzard's free online gaming service, Battle.net, which launched with the original Diablo.
In September of 1993, David Brevik founded Condor, Inc., along with friends Erich and Max Schaefer. Condor was renamed Blizzard North when the company was acquired by the owners of Blizzard Entertainment in June of 1996. David's other projects in the early days of Condor, Inc. included Lead programming and Design positions on Justice League Task Force (Sega Genesis) and Quarterback Club Football (handheld systems).
BILL ROPER
Bill Roper has been a well-known figure in the worldwide gaming industry for nearly a decade. He served as a Vice President of Blizzard North and was Director of Blizzard Entertainment, based in San Mateo, California. Bill oversaw and managed all external projects, coordinated internal development teams, and headed Blizzard's project oversight teams where he was instrumental in shaping the direction of the games. At the time of his departure, Roper was a Project Lead and Designer on an unannounced project at Blizzard North.
From 1994 to 2001, Bill worked directly on all of Blizzard's top-selling products from the Blizzard headquarters in Irvine, California. These projects included Warcraft II: Tides of Darkness (Producer), Diablo (Producer), StarCraft (Producer), Diablo II (Senior Producer), Warcraft II: Beyond the Dark portal (Executive Producer) and StarCraft: Brood War (Executive Producer). He also played a key role in the world design and managed the manual design for Warcraft, Warcraft II, StarCraft, Diablo, and Diablo II.
Roper also served as a producer on several Macintosh versions of these games and worked as a member of the project oversight teams for the console versions of Warcraft II: The Dark Saga, Diablo, and StarCraft 64. He also managed the authorized add-ons for Warcraft, Diablo, and StarCraft.
In addition to his managerial responsibilities, Bill applied his education in Commercial Music with vocal emphasis from California State University, Long Beach, by both acting in and assisting with the direction of the voice recording for the Warcraft, Diablo, and StarCraft franchises.
ERICH SCHAEFER
Erich Schaefer is a twelve-year veteran of the gaming industry who, until very recently, served as Vice President for Blizzard North. At Blizzard North he was a manager jointly responsible for all aspects of running the division. As a Director of Blizzard Entertainment for over seven years, he was influential in most creative and business aspects of the company.
Erich was a Project Lead, Design Lead and Art Director on Diablo and Diablo II. He was the sole environment artist on the original Diablo as well as the interface artist for both Diablo and Diablo II. Erich also played an important role in the design of the structure and interface for Blizzard's free online gaming service, Battle.net. At the time of his departure from Blizzard Entertainment, Erich was leading and art directing an unannounced project at Blizzard North.
In September of 1993, Erich Schaefer founded Condor, Inc., along with his brother Max and friend David Brevik. Condor was renamed Blizzard North when the company was acquired by the owners of Blizzard Entertainment in June of 1996. Erich's other projects in the early days of Condor, Inc. included positions as Art and Design Lead on Justice League Task Force (Sega Genesis) and Quarterback Club Football (handheld systems).
MAX SCHAEFER
Max Schaefer, a twelve-year interactive entertainment industry veteran, served as a Vice President for Blizzard North and a Director of Blizzard Entertainment. He was a member of several internal project oversight teams, lending essential foresight to numerous Blizzard games. At the time of his departure from Blizzard Entertainment, Max was a Project Lead and Designer on an unannounced project at Blizzard North.
Max contributed to art design on the original Diablo while simultaneously working on another title, and took over the responsibilities as Project, Design and Environment Art Director on Diablo II. He was the Executive Producer and a key design influence on Diablo II: Lord of Destruction.
In September of 1993, Max Schaefer founded Condor, Inc., along with his brother Erich and friend David Brevik. Condor was renamed Blizzard North when the company was acquired by the owners of Blizzard Entertainment in June of 1996. Max's other projects in the early days of Condor, Inc. included positions as Art and Design Lead on Justice League Task Force (Sega Genesis) and Quarterback Club Football (handheld systems) as well as being the Project and Art Lead on the flagship football title for the launch of the M2 gaming platform.
KENNETH WILLIAMS
Kenneth Williams has over eight years of experience in the games industry and served as both the Director of Business Development and Operations and a producer for Blizzard North. At the time of his departure from Blizzard Entertainment, he was a Producer on both the highly anticipated 1.10 revamp patch for Diablo II as well as an unannounced project at Blizzard North.
Kenneth was a Producer and Localization Producer on both Diablo II and Diablo II: Lord of Destruction, and also was a member of the Global Launch Team for Diablo II: Lord of Destruction that was responsible for simultaneously shipping the product to 15 countries in 9 languages. He also provided additional design for the original Diablo.
Starting in 1995, Kenneth ran the business of Condor, Inc. allowing the creative Founders to focus on creating great games. This successful structure and their work on the original Diablo lead to the purchase of Condor, Inc. where he was also responsible for overseeing the merger process with Davidson & Associates, Inc. in 1996. After the acquisition, Kenneth was responsible for all aspects of managing Operations at Blizzard North including setting and maintaining budgets, conducting contract negotiations, handling all purchasing and accounts payable needs, directing human resource issues including employee immigration status, and providing oversight of the IT department and facilities management.
Previous to working at Condor, Inc. and Blizzard North, Kenneth earned his Jurisprudence Degree from Loyola Law School in Los Angeles (1993), and is a member of the bar in both New York (1994) and California (1995).
DAVE GLENN
Dave Glenn has been a member of the games industry for seven years, working most recently as Lead Background Artist on an unannounced project at Blizzard North. His work on the Diablo franchise was instrumental in establishing the visual design and dark feel of that world, making his work immediately recognizable to gamers around the world.
Dave was the chief Background Artist on both Diablo II and the expansion set, Diablo II: Lord of Destruction. His Bachelor of Architecture degree from Virginia Tech serves a solid foundation upon which he creates fantastic, yet believable structures and settings that stage and unify the world in which the game is set.
Previous to his work at Blizzard North, Dave also created numerous 3D architectural assets for SimCity 3000 while working as a contractor for Maxis.
PETER HU
Peter Hu has worked for eight years in the gaming industry, has served as a main Programmer on the latest releases in the Diablo franchise, and was most recently Lead Programmer on the highly anticipated 1.10 patch for Diablo II. His work on the Diablo series of games included programming and technical design on random level generation, player and monster skills, item randomization and powers, client/server data streaming, monster AI, quest logic, special effects and overall playability and balance.
Peter was a Programmer on both Diablo II and Diablo II: Lord of Destruction and moved into creating ongoing content for the franchise as well as providing design and programming insights for upcoming projects. He commonly worked with programmers across various aspects of the project and organized the implementation and integration of new content into the game. Peter also worked on the design of several key systems for an unannounced project at Blizzard North.
Prior to joining Blizzard North, Peter served as a Lead Programmer on several projects at 3DO.
PHIL SHENK
Phil Shenk has been in the games industry for seven years, working most recently as a Lead Character Artist and concept artist while contributing to the design and story on an unannounced project at Blizzard North. His work on the Diablo franchise was instrumental in setting the look and tone of the characters and monsters in the games and makes his work immediately recognizable to gamers worldwide.
Phil was Lead Character Artist on Diablo II and was the Art Director on the expansion set, Diablo II: Lord of Destruction. He also created and organized much of the process involved in bringing character art from the concept phase through completion and incorporation into the game, as well as working closely with the technical and design facets of the team to ensure the best possible integration of his team's work into the project as a whole
Phil has served at a high level for numerous development companies, including Art Director at Maxis South, Director of Product Development at Wild Tangent, Creative Director at Glasseye Entertainment and Art Director at Electronic Arts (Origin).
TYLER THOMPSON
Tyler Thompson is a six-year veteran of the gaming industry who served as Lead Programmer on the latest release in the Diablo franchise, and was most recently Lead Programmer on an unannounced project at Blizzard North. His work on the Diablo series of games included programming and technical design on random level generation, player and monster skills, collision and pathing, client/server synchronization, monster AI, level layout tools, content creation tools, quests and the creation and implementation of special effects.
Tyler was a Programmer on Diablo II and moved into the Project Lead position for Diablo II: Lord of Destruction. He commonly worked with teams of programmers and organized the implementation and integration of both art and programming content into the game. Tyler also worked on the design of several projects in the areas of player skills, monster behavior and quest design as well as serving on the project oversight teams for Warcraft III and World of Warcraft.
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Let me ask a question. Who of the people that made Blizzard once so famous are still working for it?
Cheers,
Tommi
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PATRICK WYATT
Patrick Wyatt was previously Blizzard Entertainment's Vice President of Research and Development. He was most recently the team lead and lead programmer of Battle.net. Previously, Pat was a senior programmer on both StarCraft and Diablo, and wrote the multiplayer code for both games. He was also a producer and senior programmer on Warcraft II, for which he wrote both the networking and multiplayer code, and producer and lead programmer for Warcraft I. Pat also worked on Lost Vikings, Battle Chess, Rock and Roll Racing, Death and Return of Superman, and Justice League Task Force. Pat was employed at Blizzard more than eight years.
MIKE O'BRIEN
Mike O'Brien was also a company director of Blizzard, where he worked for four and one-half years. He was most recently the team lead and lead programmer of Warcraft III, and personally developed the game's 3D rendering engine. Mike was the original creator and architect of Battle.net and was lead programmer on that project. He was also a senior programmer on StarCraft and Diablo, as well as the author of the network code for both games, and was a programmer on Warcraft II. Mike was featured as one of the 25 most influential people in the game industry in PC Gamer's September 1999 cover story, "Game Gods."
JEFF STRAIN
Jeff Strain was the team lead and lead programmer of Blizzard's massively multiplayer role-playing game, World of Warcraft. He was also a senior programmer on both Warcraft III and StarCraft, and a programmer on Diablo. Jeff was the creator of the StarCraft Campaign Editor and was employed at Blizzard for four years.
DAVID BREVIK
David Brevik has been in the games industry for over twelve years, starting his career as Lead Technical Director at Iguana Entertainment before leaving in 1993 to form Condor, Inc. He spent the last seven years as both President for Blizzard North and as a Director of Blizzard Entertainment where, as a member of numerous internal and external project oversight teams, he brought a unique vision and understanding of design and technology to Blizzard's games. At the time of his departure from Blizzard Entertainment, David was a Project Lead and Designer on an unannounced project at Blizzard North.
David was a Project Lead, Design Lead and Lead Programmer on Diablo and Diablo II. Brevik also played an important role in the initial and iterative structural design of Blizzard's free online gaming service, Battle.net, which launched with the original Diablo.
In September of 1993, David Brevik founded Condor, Inc., along with friends Erich and Max Schaefer. Condor was renamed Blizzard North when the company was acquired by the owners of Blizzard Entertainment in June of 1996. David's other projects in the early days of Condor, Inc. included Lead programming and Design positions on Justice League Task Force (Sega Genesis) and Quarterback Club Football (handheld systems).
BILL ROPER
Bill Roper has been a well-known figure in the worldwide gaming industry for nearly a decade. He served as a Vice President of Blizzard North and was Director of Blizzard Entertainment, based in San Mateo, California. Bill oversaw and managed all external projects, coordinated internal development teams, and headed Blizzard's project oversight teams where he was instrumental in shaping the direction of the games. At the time of his departure, Roper was a Project Lead and Designer on an unannounced project at Blizzard North.
From 1994 to 2001, Bill worked directly on all of Blizzard's top-selling products from the Blizzard headquarters in Irvine, California. These projects included Warcraft II: Tides of Darkness (Producer), Diablo (Producer), StarCraft (Producer), Diablo II (Senior Producer), Warcraft II: Beyond the Dark portal (Executive Producer) and StarCraft: Brood War (Executive Producer). He also played a key role in the world design and managed the manual design for Warcraft, Warcraft II, StarCraft, Diablo, and Diablo II.
Roper also served as a producer on several Macintosh versions of these games and worked as a member of the project oversight teams for the console versions of Warcraft II: The Dark Saga, Diablo, and StarCraft 64. He also managed the authorized add-ons for Warcraft, Diablo, and StarCraft.
In addition to his managerial responsibilities, Bill applied his education in Commercial Music with vocal emphasis from California State University, Long Beach, by both acting in and assisting with the direction of the voice recording for the Warcraft, Diablo, and StarCraft franchises.
ERICH SCHAEFER
Erich Schaefer is a twelve-year veteran of the gaming industry who, until very recently, served as Vice President for Blizzard North. At Blizzard North he was a manager jointly responsible for all aspects of running the division. As a Director of Blizzard Entertainment for over seven years, he was influential in most creative and business aspects of the company.
Erich was a Project Lead, Design Lead and Art Director on Diablo and Diablo II. He was the sole environment artist on the original Diablo as well as the interface artist for both Diablo and Diablo II. Erich also played an important role in the design of the structure and interface for Blizzard's free online gaming service, Battle.net. At the time of his departure from Blizzard Entertainment, Erich was leading and art directing an unannounced project at Blizzard North.
In September of 1993, Erich Schaefer founded Condor, Inc., along with his brother Max and friend David Brevik. Condor was renamed Blizzard North when the company was acquired by the owners of Blizzard Entertainment in June of 1996. Erich's other projects in the early days of Condor, Inc. included positions as Art and Design Lead on Justice League Task Force (Sega Genesis) and Quarterback Club Football (handheld systems).
MAX SCHAEFER
Max Schaefer, a twelve-year interactive entertainment industry veteran, served as a Vice President for Blizzard North and a Director of Blizzard Entertainment. He was a member of several internal project oversight teams, lending essential foresight to numerous Blizzard games. At the time of his departure from Blizzard Entertainment, Max was a Project Lead and Designer on an unannounced project at Blizzard North.
Max contributed to art design on the original Diablo while simultaneously working on another title, and took over the responsibilities as Project, Design and Environment Art Director on Diablo II. He was the Executive Producer and a key design influence on Diablo II: Lord of Destruction.
In September of 1993, Max Schaefer founded Condor, Inc., along with his brother Erich and friend David Brevik. Condor was renamed Blizzard North when the company was acquired by the owners of Blizzard Entertainment in June of 1996. Max's other projects in the early days of Condor, Inc. included positions as Art and Design Lead on Justice League Task Force (Sega Genesis) and Quarterback Club Football (handheld systems) as well as being the Project and Art Lead on the flagship football title for the launch of the M2 gaming platform.
KENNETH WILLIAMS
Kenneth Williams has over eight years of experience in the games industry and served as both the Director of Business Development and Operations and a producer for Blizzard North. At the time of his departure from Blizzard Entertainment, he was a Producer on both the highly anticipated 1.10 revamp patch for Diablo II as well as an unannounced project at Blizzard North.
Kenneth was a Producer and Localization Producer on both Diablo II and Diablo II: Lord of Destruction, and also was a member of the Global Launch Team for Diablo II: Lord of Destruction that was responsible for simultaneously shipping the product to 15 countries in 9 languages. He also provided additional design for the original Diablo.
Starting in 1995, Kenneth ran the business of Condor, Inc. allowing the creative Founders to focus on creating great games. This successful structure and their work on the original Diablo lead to the purchase of Condor, Inc. where he was also responsible for overseeing the merger process with Davidson & Associates, Inc. in 1996. After the acquisition, Kenneth was responsible for all aspects of managing Operations at Blizzard North including setting and maintaining budgets, conducting contract negotiations, handling all purchasing and accounts payable needs, directing human resource issues including employee immigration status, and providing oversight of the IT department and facilities management.
Previous to working at Condor, Inc. and Blizzard North, Kenneth earned his Jurisprudence Degree from Loyola Law School in Los Angeles (1993), and is a member of the bar in both New York (1994) and California (1995).
DAVE GLENN
Dave Glenn has been a member of the games industry for seven years, working most recently as Lead Background Artist on an unannounced project at Blizzard North. His work on the Diablo franchise was instrumental in establishing the visual design and dark feel of that world, making his work immediately recognizable to gamers around the world.
Dave was the chief Background Artist on both Diablo II and the expansion set, Diablo II: Lord of Destruction. His Bachelor of Architecture degree from Virginia Tech serves a solid foundation upon which he creates fantastic, yet believable structures and settings that stage and unify the world in which the game is set.
Previous to his work at Blizzard North, Dave also created numerous 3D architectural assets for SimCity 3000 while working as a contractor for Maxis.
PETER HU
Peter Hu has worked for eight years in the gaming industry, has served as a main Programmer on the latest releases in the Diablo franchise, and was most recently Lead Programmer on the highly anticipated 1.10 patch for Diablo II. His work on the Diablo series of games included programming and technical design on random level generation, player and monster skills, item randomization and powers, client/server data streaming, monster AI, quest logic, special effects and overall playability and balance.
Peter was a Programmer on both Diablo II and Diablo II: Lord of Destruction and moved into creating ongoing content for the franchise as well as providing design and programming insights for upcoming projects. He commonly worked with programmers across various aspects of the project and organized the implementation and integration of new content into the game. Peter also worked on the design of several key systems for an unannounced project at Blizzard North.
Prior to joining Blizzard North, Peter served as a Lead Programmer on several projects at 3DO.
PHIL SHENK
Phil Shenk has been in the games industry for seven years, working most recently as a Lead Character Artist and concept artist while contributing to the design and story on an unannounced project at Blizzard North. His work on the Diablo franchise was instrumental in setting the look and tone of the characters and monsters in the games and makes his work immediately recognizable to gamers worldwide.
Phil was Lead Character Artist on Diablo II and was the Art Director on the expansion set, Diablo II: Lord of Destruction. He also created and organized much of the process involved in bringing character art from the concept phase through completion and incorporation into the game, as well as working closely with the technical and design facets of the team to ensure the best possible integration of his team's work into the project as a whole
Phil has served at a high level for numerous development companies, including Art Director at Maxis South, Director of Product Development at Wild Tangent, Creative Director at Glasseye Entertainment and Art Director at Electronic Arts (Origin).
TYLER THOMPSON
Tyler Thompson is a six-year veteran of the gaming industry who served as Lead Programmer on the latest release in the Diablo franchise, and was most recently Lead Programmer on an unannounced project at Blizzard North. His work on the Diablo series of games included programming and technical design on random level generation, player and monster skills, collision and pathing, client/server synchronization, monster AI, level layout tools, content creation tools, quests and the creation and implementation of special effects.
Tyler was a Programmer on Diablo II and moved into the Project Lead position for Diablo II: Lord of Destruction. He commonly worked with teams of programmers and organized the implementation and integration of both art and programming content into the game. Tyler also worked on the design of several projects in the areas of player skills, monster behavior and quest design as well as serving on the project oversight teams for Warcraft III and World of Warcraft.
--------------
Let me ask a question. Who of the people that made Blizzard once so famous are still working for it?
Cheers,
Tommi
Hammer of Atur
PvE/RP World of Warcraft Guild
Argent Dawn (European RP server), Alliance side
Dwarf Campaign
Awarded Custom Campaign for Warcraft III
Tommi's Diablo II information and guides
The de facto source of Diablo II game mechanics
PvE/RP World of Warcraft Guild
Argent Dawn (European RP server), Alliance side
Dwarf Campaign
Awarded Custom Campaign for Warcraft III
Tommi's Diablo II information and guides
The de facto source of Diablo II game mechanics