Drew Karpyshyn, the lead writer on Mass Effect and Mass Effect 2 and senior writer on Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic, is now part of Archetype Entertainment

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Former Mass Effect Writer Joins Other BioWare Vets At Wizards Of The Coast Studio

Wizards of the Coast new game improvement studio, Archetype Entertainment, has landed one other former BioWare veteran: Drew Karpyshyn, the lead author on Mass Effect and Mass Effect 2 and senior author on Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic. Just last month, Wizards of the Coast, Magic: The Gathering’s publisher, announced a new game development studio in the form of Archetype Entertainment. Former BioWare Creative Director James Ohlen leads the team. Chad Robertson, who once served as BioWare’s Head of Live Service, is Archetype’s General Manager. Now the recently formed studio is expanding once more, adding yet another BioWare alum to its ranks Mass Effect writer Drew Karpyshyn. In joining the Austin, Texas-based studio, Karpyshyn assumes the role of Lead Writer.

Karpyshyn worked at BioWare for more than 18 years, according to his LinkedIn profile, and is joining his former colleagues James Ohlen and Chad Robertson at Archetype. On his personal website, Karpyshyn said the young studio reminds him of BioWare’s “early days.”

“When I started at BioWare, everything was fresh and exciting, It was a dream job gifted folks working collectively to create epic games like Baldur’s Gate, KOTOR, Mass Effect and Dragon Age. But as we grew and have become extra profitable, issues modified. We turned extra company. We have been much less capable of make what we liked, and the groups have been pushed to create games primarily based on market analysis slightly than our artistic instincts and passions. My dream job turned only a job, and I misplaced the passion and pleasure I as soon as had.” “However with Archetype, my enthusiasm has actually been revived. The feel in the studio advises me of my early days at BioWare; I can feel the magic in the air. And despite the fact that I can’t get unfathomable into the specifics of what we’re dealing with yet, we’re currently creating plenty of enjoyment in the market.”

Although Archetype’s first project is still largely shrouded in mystery, it’s confirmed to be a “multi-platform roleplaying game set in a new science fiction universe”. And we can perhaps glean a few additional hints from the company’s mission statement, which reads, “We believe there will always be a place for story-driven roleplaying games that put the player at the center of an epic personal narrative with impactful choices. We are building games that represent the diversity of our audience.” Hopefully it won’t be long before the team is ready to reveal more.