John Hight, chief of the Warcraft universe at Blizzard Leisure, announced on his personal X account this week he was leaving the corporate for “a brand new quest.”
I had the chance to do an prolonged interview with Hight final fall at BlizzCon in Anaheim, California. The dialog ranged over a lot of what he had performed and seen over 12 years of shepherding Warcraft in numerous kinds (particularly World of Warcraft), and included what he thought his legacy on the firm can be.
Hight has been across the business for many years, an old-fashioned recreation govt. He got here to Blizzard from Sony, the place had labored on God of Conflict 3 and the launch of the PlayStation Community. Earlier than that, he was an govt producer at Atari and Digital Arts, the place he managed groups at Westwood Studios, usually in direct competitors with Blizzard’s real-time technique releases.
Trying again, he stated final fall that he hoped his greatest legacy at Blizzard and on the whole can be the folks that he inspired. “I get to work with all these folks, and these persons are going to do nice issues,” he stated then. “So my legacy is that they will bear in mind me, in some form or kind. This goofy little man noticed my potential and gave me a shot.”
He talked about three examples particularly. The primary was Xinghan “Jenova” Chen, who he met when Chen was a grad scholar on the College of Southern California and Hight was an adjunct professor. “I noticed that spark in his eye and that need, and he had a extremely novel, type of bizarre strategy to what he needed to do in a recreation,” Hight stated. “Boy, I might see that zeal. I am like, ‘I need to signal you up. We will make stuff.’ “
Chen and good friend Kellee Santiago received $20,000 to develop Cloud, a narrative specializing in the internal lifetime of a hospital affected person. Hight noticed the sport at a scholar showcase on the Sport Builders Convention. Chen and Santiago would go on to cofound Thatgamecompany, and their video games Move, Flower, and Journey debuted on PlayStation Community underneath Hight’s oversight. Move was the most-downloaded recreation on PSN in 2007.
“With the ability to do this…” Hight stated, shaking his head as he remembered. “I see that now.”
The second story was about Chris Metzen, narrative father of the Warcraft universe, desirous to return to World of Warcraft. “When Chris was contemplating coming again to Blizzard, he referred to as me, as a result of he and I performed Warhammer collectively, and he trusts me,” Hight stated. “I am like, ‘Oh my god, that’d be unbelievable.'”
Metzen’s return was a roaring success, and resulted within the announcement at BlizzCon final fall of a three-expansion trilogy of tales that was celebrated by followers. “I might really feel the staff needed that type of religious chief, particularly on the story facet,” Hight stated.
His closing instance was Holly Longdale, who joined the World of Warcraft staff to steer WoW Basic. “I received to see Holly Longdale. She interviewed from EverQuest, and she or he was such an enormous fan, and so pleased. I am like, OK, come over and do Basic. And she or he kicked ass.”
Longdale finally took Hight’s outdated job as WoW’s govt producer. It was a shocking transfer, as she didn’t maintain the place that had historically been subsequent in line for consideration, Hight stated. “She stated, ‘Ought to I even apply for this? Do I actually have a likelihood?’ ” he stated of her present place. “And I stated, ‘You kicked ass. You probably did nice. Sure, apply.’ She freaking earned it.”
Longdale might now be the particular person best-positioned inside Blizzard to take Hight’s job as the overall supervisor of Warcraft when he departs.
Throughout his final BlizzCon with the corporate in November, he had the chance to present an impromptu pep discuss to some college students and returning college students. “I stated, do not ask for anybody else’s permission to be assured. Discover it inside your self,” he stated then. “I get to see the potential in folks. I used to be capable of work with folks that had been nice and that carried the torch.”
