Ben Irving, the lead producer for Anthem who’s been working at BioWare for over eight years, is leaving the studio. Irving announced his departure from BioWare Thursday on Twitter in a thread that confirmed he was going to work at another gaming company. He hasn’t yet said what company he’ll be working with, but he looked back on his time at BioWare and ahead to Anthem’s “bright future.”
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Irving’s three-tweet announcement about his move away from BioWare can be seen below as he said he’d be forever grateful for the opportunities he was given and that he’d “really enjoyed” working with the Anthem community. He acknowledged Anthem’s “good times and the tough times” and said the community is in “good hands.”
(1/3) After 8 amazing years at BioWare I have made the decision to move on and have accepted an exciting opportunity at another gaming company. Since the first time I played Baldurs Gate many many years ago, BioWare was the dream place I always wanted to work.
— Ben Irving (@BenIrvo) August 15, 2019
(2/3) I will forever be grateful to all the people who gave me the chance to work on great products with amazing people. I believe Anthem has a bright future – there is a great team working on it and I look forward to following its progress (and playing it!) from the sidelines.
— Ben Irving (@BenIrvo) August 15, 2019
(3/3) I have really enjoyed interacting with the Anthem community – Streams, Twitter and Reddit. Through the good times and the tough times. You all are in great hands with @Darokaz and @UNTDrew (and have been for some time now). I wish nothing but the best for all of you. Ben.
— Ben Irving (@BenIrvo) August 15, 2019
The lead producer for Anthem directed followers to Electronic Arts’ global lead for its core community Jesse Anderson and Anthem’s global community lead Andrew Johnson as the individuals who will be handling community interactions when his departure is completed.
Irving was also notably the lead producer for Star Wars: The Old Republic. While serving as the lead producer for Anthem for more than two years, Irving was frequently spotted in online discussions on Reddit and in other forums where he answered questions from players and addressed various topics.
Back in May, BioWare responded to claims of developers leaving Anthem and said it was “100% committed” to the game. Chad Robertson, head of live service at BioWare, said then that the team was working on new content that would be revealed when it neared completion. Robertson added that he and Irving were joined by ” a big team between Austin and Edmonton focused and motivated for improving the game.”
