After 22 years, Metzen will be closing the book on his own story with Blizzard. Informally he announced this through a forum post on Blizzard’s official forums. However, it is yet to be seen what sort of event or memorial – if any – will be held to celebrate and honor his time with the company. In the post announcing his departure, Metzen goes into detail about his past, saying his time playing Dungeons and Dragons motivated him to get his job at Blizzard Entertainment (at the time known as Chaos Studios).
Metzen goes on to recount his years at Blizzard, sharing tidbits of his experience and wisdom he has accrued over the years. He thanks his coworkers, and the fans, and goes on to announce his retirement in earnest half way through the post. It was clear in his post that Metzen will not be moving onto another developer or starting his own company, and has no intention of starting any solo projects. He explains that his decision to retire is strongly tied to his desire to spend the rest of his time as a family man, and focus all his attention and energy on his wife and new baby.
Below is the retirement announcement in full, posted to the World of Warcraft official forums by Community Manager Kaivax:
Chris, you’ve given us more than we could ever ask for. Thank you for everything. May your days be long, and your hardships few.
