Chris Metzen, Senior VP of Story and Franchise Development at Blizzard, has announced his retirement from the company after 23 years. As one of the most public-facing figures at the studio, Metzen is known for his work across the Diablo, Warcraft and Starcraft series', and also served as creative director on Overwatch.

Metzen announced the move in a blogpost on the battle.net forums. "For nearly twenty-three years I’ve had the very distinct privilege of shaping worlds and building games with the brightest creative minds in entertainment," Metzen wrote. "I’ve walked with giants (and stood on some giants’ shoulders, too). In short, I’ve had the time of my life."

The amicable departure is not, apparently, in preparation for a new career move. Metzen is really retiring. "The reason I use the word 'retire' is because I’m not going to some other company or starting up new projects or anything remotely like that," he wrote. "It’s been a long, amazing stretch of years. Now it’s time to slow it down. Rest. Lay around on the couch and get fat. Well, fatter…



"Seriously though, I’ll be focusing on the one thing that matters most to me in all the world—my family. They’re the core of my life and the source of my deepest joy and inspiration."

Metzen leaves at a pretty good time for Blizzard: Overwatch is burning along just fine, and World of Warcraft's Legion expansion has been well-received. If it takes your fancy, here's an interview we conducted with Metzen back in 2011, or for something more recent, here's Metzen on Overwatch.