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V_Ben · Jan 30, 2013

http://www.polygon.com/2013/1/29/3925628/zynga-chief-game-designer

Zynga's chief game designer and acclaimed developer Brian Reynolds has left the company, sources tell Polygon.

Reynolds joined Zynga in 2009, stepping away from his role as CEO and creative director at Big Huge Games, shortly after the company was acquired by 38 Studios.

Reynolds was initially hired to head up Zynga East in Baltimore and help create new social games with a "strategic emphasis." Reynolds, who's game development portfolio includes Civilization 2, Alpha Centauri and Rise of Nations, went on to help develop Frontierville and Cityville 2 for Zynga.

Well. I have to wonder where he'll end up next.

Acosta · Jan 30, 2013

Praise the sun.

REYNOLDS, SPIRITUAL SEQUEL OF ALPHA CENTAURI-KICKSTARTER-NOW!

LiK · Jan 30, 2013

Time to make some real games!

)))

MikeE21286 · Jan 30, 2013

Leaving rubble in his wake.

BowieZ · Jan 30, 2013

Also left Big Huge before the 38 Studios acquisition?

This dude knows when to leave on a high note.

Guevara · Jan 30, 2013

So Zynga has lost:

Chief Technical Off.
CFO
COO
Chief Creative Off.
CGO (this guy)
4? GMs
and a couple of high profile VPs

All in the past ~6 months.

EDIT: And their Chief Security Officer

AND their Chief Marketing Officer, jesus

kadotsu · Jan 30, 2013

My money is on Riot for his next gig.

grimshawish · Jan 30, 2013

*checks*
Nintendo is still alive...but...Facebook!

Seriously though, Zynga killed itself. I include people beyond its owner in that; staff and employees all jumped on a ship already taking on water and thought they could sail the Atlantic with it.

Guevara said:
So Zynga has lost:

C Techincal O
CFO
COO
C Creative O
CGO (this guy)
4? GMs
and a couple of high profile VPs

All in the past ~6 months.

Do we have a list of how many studios they've shut?

Kifimbo · Jan 30, 2013

BowieZ said:
Also left Big Huge before the 38 Studios acquisition?

This dude knows when to leave on a high note.

That's a bit unfair for Big Huge Games. Kingdom of Amalur was good.

DidntKnowJack · Jan 30, 2013

Isn't that the guy who played the Green Lantern in that shitty movie?

Aquamarine · Jan 30, 2013

One step closer to Zynga's inevitable death.

Another foot in the grave.

MrCompletely · Jan 30, 2013

Guevara said:
So Zynga has lost:

Chief Technical Off.
CFO
COO
Chief Creative Off.
CGO (this guy)
4? GMs
and a couple of high profile VPs

All in the past ~6 months.

EDIT: And their Chief Security Officer

AND their Chief Marketing Officer, jesus

How is this a surprise, their stock has been in the shitter for 10 months and worthless for almost 5 months. If anything, it's a wonder he's lasted this long.

Sentenza · Jan 30, 2013

Kifimbo said:
That's a bit unfair for Big Huge Games. Kingdom of Amalur was good.

Personally I don't think that's true, but to be fair I also don't think that was the point of his joke.

BorkBork · Jan 30, 2013

Can't imagine going to work everyday in that type of sinking ship environment.

Guevara · Jan 30, 2013

grimshawish said:
Do we have a list of how many studios they've shut?

Boston, Austin, Japan and UK studios at least

kr2t0s · Jan 30, 2013

Loved him in Drive.

revolverjgw · Jan 30, 2013

Like this post if you read this as Burt Reynolds

Eaten By A Grue · Jan 30, 2013

DidntKnowJack said:
Isn't that the guy who played the Green Lantern in that shitty movie?

You are mistaken, Brian Reynolds played Van Wilder.

Fivefold · Jan 30, 2013

kadotsu said:
My money is on Riot for his next gig.

So he can design generic big tit animu champions? God that would be terrible.

He needs to go back to Firaxis and make Alpha Centauri II. X-Com happened, I believe.

Liquidus · Jan 30, 2013

Wow! Zynga hasn't been shut down yet?

Today I learnth.

Arkam · Jan 30, 2013

Guevara said:
So Zynga has lost:

Chief Technical Off.
CFO
COO
Chief Creative Off.
CGO (this guy)
4? GMs
and a couple of high profile VPs

All in the past ~6 months.

EDIT: And their Chief Security Officer

AND their Chief Marketing Officer, jesus

And they wonder why I have turned down 3 job offers from them

I feel bad for all my friends who drank the kool aid and gave up sweet gigs at solid companies for a quick pay day. Zynga COULD bounce back, but I sure dont want to stake a few years of my career on it.

Aquamarine · Jan 30, 2013

Liquidus said:
Wow! Zynga hasn't been shut down yet?

Today I learnth.

Its stock has been dead since last August.

TheChewyWaffles · Jan 30, 2013

Zynga is in a death spiral.

SneakyStephan · Jan 30, 2013

Guevara said:
So Zynga has lost:

Chief Technical Off.
CFO
COO
Chief Creative Off.
CGO (this guy)
4? GMs
and a couple of high profile VPs

All in the past ~6 months.

EDIT: And their Chief Security Officer

AND their Chief Marketing Officer, jesus

Easy come easy go.
The kind of people that would be greedy and cynical enough to both have talent (maybe) and be willing to work for zynga were obviously going to be the first to leave as well .

I find this all delicious. Burn zynga burn.

Jiguryo · Jan 30, 2013

As Sheldon Cooper would put it, "bye Zynga".

instantrimshot

Anticitizen One · Jan 30, 2013

is he related to ryan reynolds?

Ghazi · Jan 30, 2013

Zynga is still a thing?

Technosteve · Jan 30, 2013

Acosta said:
Praise the sun.

REYNOLDS, SPIRITUAL SEQUEL OF ALPHA CENTAURI-KICKSTARTER-NOW!

BEST FIRST POST IS BEST

DaBuddaDa · Jan 30, 2013

After the success of Civ V and XCOM, a new Alpha Centurai would be the next logical step. Do itttttttt.

decoyplatypus · Jan 30, 2013

Acosta said:
Praise the sun.

REYNOLDS, SPIRITUAL SEQUEL OF ALPHA CENTAURI-KICKSTARTER-NOW!

Yes, please.

Boerseun · Jan 30, 2013

Civilisation 2 is best Civilisation (in my opinion).

It's going to be great having Reynolds back doing proper games.

DaBuddaDa · Jan 30, 2013

Boerseun said:
It's going to be great having Reynolds back doing proper games.

There has been no word where he is going next. He might not know himself for a while. Don't jinx it.

taizuke · Jan 30, 2013

I read "Ryan Reynolds loves Zynga"...

Corto · Jan 30, 2013

Next Soren Johnson needs to bail out and both need to go to Stardock or Firaxis to make a Alpha Centauri sequel.

jambo · Jan 30, 2013

Now he can start working on Green Lantern 2

megalowho · Jan 30, 2013

Finally. He deserves better than Zynga's crippling design philosophies (and crumbling business).

Corto said:
Next Soren Johnson needs to bail out and both need to go to Stardock or Firaxis to make a Alpha Centauri sequel.

This, they should be doing this

TheListener · Jan 30, 2013

Hopefully he made enough money on Zynga's IPO to fund a new studio. He's a good guy and a great designer.

Gannd · Jan 30, 2013

I haven't forgiven him for the snotty interviews he gave in 2009 about the death of traditional games and the rise of social games. NEVERFORGET!

reptilescorpio · Jan 30, 2013

I'm so happy right now.

All I want in this world is Rise of Nations 2.

Please please please.

Mononoke · Jan 30, 2013

revolverjgw said:
Like this post if you read this as Burt Reynolds

Totally what I came here to post. In fact, I actually saw this thread a couple times in my feed before entering it, and I still read it as Burt Reynolds each time.

Kifimbo · Jan 30, 2013

Some tweets from superannuation.

superannuation ‏@supererogatory
Senior producer at Zynga East left this month for Epic Games' Baltimore studio. http://j.mp/TUrPKC

Lead designer on Rise of Nations left Zynga East in November. http://j.mp/WwxQf0

I suspect there are going to be more departures.

http://j.mp/WA121p - also, Zynga East's creative director left the studio this month.

Dave Inscore was a fellow cofounder of Big Huge Games and served as the Zynga East's art director.

Had a sinking feeling that Brian Reynolds might be leaving Zynga after I saw a few weeks ago that Dave Inscore left http://j.mp/VuIqF2

Dark Octave · Jan 30, 2013

Magnum P.I. was also working for a videogame company?

I thought he would have been retired from everything by now.

subversus · Jan 30, 2013

FUCK YES!!!!!!@#!@!@!@!@#!@#%324sddfd!!!

A Black Falcon · Jan 30, 2013

Acosta said:
Praise the sun.

REYNOLDS, SPIRITUAL SEQUEL OF ALPHA CENTAURI-KICKSTARTER-NOW!

Entirely agreed! Hopefully he makes games again, Civ II and Alpha Centauri are two of the two best games ever.

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