Warren Spector, the legendary game developer known for being a key part in the development of the Deus Ex series as well as his role in Epic Mickey, Ultima, and System Shock, has announced his retirement.
Posting a lengthy statement on LinkedIn, Spector established that he’s “pretty sure” this would mark the end of his career. The full statement can be read below:
“I’ve had a great career. Wouldn’t change a thing even if I could. But the reasons to retire are simple: I’m a month away from my 44th year as a developer. I’ve had the chance to work on tabletop roleplaying games and boardgames. I’ve worked on more digital games than I can remember — 17 full games, I think, and 9 or so add-on packs. Gratifyingly, some of those games are still being played 15… 20… 30 years later. And most of them have been in a genre that has had influence beyond what I or anyone else expected. I’ve run teams as small as a dozen and as big as 800. I’ve worked for big companies and done startups. I like to think I’ve helped some insanely talented people along in their careers. (That last is the most important.)
“With all that behind me and with age and health (my business) catching up with me I’m feeling like I’ve done what I set out to do. It’s time to write some books, do a lot of reading, do some lecturing, maybe do some consulting. (Feel free to get in touch about those last two.) Also there’s a keyboard here just waiting for me to get my piano chops back.
“I definitely have mixed feelings about this. I mean there are three games in particular I’d still like to make. (One is very big… one is very small… and one I don’t know how to make which scares me.) But the game business has changed and it’s just not as much fun for me anymore. Plus there’s a new generation of developers coming up who deserve their time in the sun.
“To all of you reading this I want you to remember that games are not a solved problem yet — there is, I hope, plenty of experimentation and innovation to come. And to all you young developers out there, I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, your job is to make people forget people like me ever existed.
“Will I come back? Never say never. But I think it’s time to ride off into the sunset. Now stop reading and make great games.”
Warren Spector is credited with being the founding father of the immersive sim genre, which emphasised player choice and interconnecting game systems that react to your decisions. Ultima VI: The False Prophet and Ultima Underworld: The Stygian Abyss are both widely believed to be the games that first formed the immersive sim genre, and Spector was a developer on both. Deus Ex, released in 2000, is what thrust the genre into the spotlight however. Once again, Spector was a key developer on the game.
It’s worth noting that Warren Spector’s announcement comes shortly after the last game he worked on – Thick as Thieves – had its final major update only a few months after its release. Despite that games’ charm, and low price, it sadly didn’t catch on which resulted in layoffs and a shift in direction on development.
Still, what a career for Spector. Eurogamer wishes him well in his retirement.
