Alan Hartman will retire as the head of Xbox Game Studios at the end November. Craig Duncan, who is currently the director of Rare, will take over (thanks to GI.biz). Hartman has been with Xbox for many years, and his credits range from Age of Empires, to Forza. However, he's only been the head of Xbox Game Studios for one year.
Matt Booty, Microsoft's Matt Booty, says that Alan's career is marked by innovation, devotion, and an unwavering love for gaming. Alan began his career at Microsoft as a CD-ROM contractor in 1988. He has worked on a wide range of projects, including Age of Empires and Brute Force, as the studio director of Digital Anvil. He also founded Turn 10 [...]. His work to advance accessibility has set a standard in the industry.
Craig Duncan, his successor, has been with Rare for 14 years. During that time, the studio worked on Microsoft's ill fated Kinect peripheral but was most notable for guiding the launch and subsequent support of Sea of Thieves. This game is regarded internally as one of Microsoft's great Game Pass drivers, regularly ranking at the top of most-played titles within the ecosystem. It has also continued to evolve and delight its large player base.
No doubt, the bean-counters at Redmond hope Duncan can spread some of that piratical glitz to other parts of their line-up. Duncan will soon be in control of a dizzying array of studios, filled with talent and incredibly well-resourced and yet... I don't believe it's fair to say Microsoft Game Studios have not been firing on all the cylinders in recent years. It seems that for every hit, there are a few misfires. And only a few months ago, Microsoft's flagship Halo studio 343 Industries announced a new brand and a new direction.
Duncan's main task will be to get something good out of the newly formed Halo Studios, but he also has to deal with Playground Games, The Initiative, Obsidian, Ninja Theory, Turn 10 and Forza, as well as Obsidian's Avowed, and Turn 10's Forza.
Joe Neate and Jim Horth are stepping in to take on Duncan's former role at Rare. Neate, who has been an executive producer at Rare for more than a decade and is currently working on Sea of Thieves, will be taking over Duncan's old role. Horth, who has been with Rare for two decades, will take over the studio director position.
Booty says that Craig will continue his focus on helping the studios to deliver high-quality, differentiating game experiences. These can grow into successful franchises, and reach more players through investing in new intellectual property.
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