Waters worked on several top selling titles, including Tomb-Raider, Halo, and Half-Life. Friends and coworkers mourned Waters on social media as news of his passing spread last week. Clever Dunne’s will be holding a private memorial for Waters on January 6th. Murayama worked on multiple entries in the Suikoden series as a writer, director and producer before eventually leaving Konami in 2002 to explore the world of freelance development. At the time of writing, Hundred Heroes is still slated for release in April this year.
- The full Kotaku article is worth reading for further remembrances from Waters’ friends in the industry.
- Friends described him as being passionate towards work, having fun, being a great friend and a talented dev.
- In it, his loved ones described how a passion for video games and programming landed him a job in Nevada programming slot machines before joining Middleton-area developer Raven Software.
Gamescom 2025
Ryan Cravens mentions that his father’s name is painted in the background of a Street Fighter stage, such was his connection to the industry. The news was shared by his family through an obituary shared via a Wisconson funeral home. In it, his loved ones described how a passion for video games and programming landed him a job in Nevada programming slot machines before joining Middleton-area developer Raven Software. He left the Activision Blizzard-owned subsidiary studio in 2022 for a job at Insomniac Games, where he helped implement the UI and accessibility features seen in Marvel’s Spider-Man 2. The news comes courtesy of several of Waters’ friends and compatriots in the game industry, including veteran game developer George Broussard and Microsoft’s Collin Moore, commiserating and sharing memories of Waters on social media this week. Ralph Baer, a true pioneer of video games, has passed away at the age of 92, Gamasutra can confirm via independent sources close to Baer.
The Golden Days of Xbox Live: Why Version 1 Was Better
His family published a statement from him on his Facebook page, stating he «‘fell out’ for the last time, even though I was healthy and everything was goin’ great. I guess it was my time to go. Luckily, I was blessed to have my family nearby.» For nearly 35 years, Lipscomb worked at developers like Maxis, Sony Interactive, and Iron Galaxy. Digital Extremes also eulogized him, calling him «a dear friend, colleague, and pioneer of Warframe.» His family eulogized him as a «brilliant, humble artist with a gentle and kind soul. … He had a quiet resolve which allowed him to valiantly fight a battle against cancer for the past several years.» According to his obituary, Brennan joined Digital Extremes right out of college as a general artist in 2001.
- When not working on video games, Gass collected «vintage and obscure gaming machines and consoles,» as well as vinyl records and antique and one-of-a-kind board games.
- Based on the people I spoke to, Waters was known as a feisty but friendly person with a penchant for sticking out his middle finger whenever a photo was taken.
- The goal of /r/Games is to provide a place for informative and interesting gaming content and discussions.Submissions should be for the purpose of informing or initiating a discussion, not just with the goal of entertaining viewers.
- Former Blizzard senior director of story and creative development, James Waugh, described Petras as a «huge hearted and genuine» person who cared deeply about those around him.
He was highly regarded as a brilliant software engineer by his peers and a great person to work with. Friends described him as being passionate towards work, having fun, being a great friend and a talented dev. A Capitol Hill fixture and longtime phenom of Seattle’s gaming industry passed away suddenly last week. Joe Waters, a developer who most recently worked as a lead with Xbox’s advanced technology group, died December 23rd.
České studio Bohemia Interactive představilo vesmírnou akci Cosmo Tales
Overwatch and World of Warcraft art director Bill Petras has passed away. Brandon Sheffield is creative director of Necrosoft Games, former editor of Game Developer magazine and gamasutra.com, and advisor for GDC, DICE, and other conferences. Longtime arcade game retailer Bill Cravens, who worked for or distributed games for such companies as Capcom, Nintendo, Cinematronics, and Universal, has passed away in his sleep on March 29, during the Amusement Showcase International show in Las Vegas. Gass is survived by his son Noble, Noble’s mother Yvonne, as well as his mother Donna and brother Timothy, as well as extended family and friends. The goal of /r/Games is to provide a place for informative and interesting gaming content and discussions.Submissions should be for the purpose of informing or initiating a discussion, not just with the goal game developer joe waters passes away of entertaining viewers.
GameStop Then vs Now
They are “more committed than ever to bringing The Wayward Realms to life exactly as Julian envisioned it”. «I’m writing to share some heartbreaking news. Bill Petras, a game development legend, has unexpectedly passed away,» said former Blizzard cinematic project director, Harley D. Huggins II, on Linkedin. Joe Waters died unexpectedly late in the night Wednesday, the cause is unknown.
Julian LeFay: The ‘Father of The Elder Scrolls’ Has Sadly Passed Away
Gamasutra has learned that veteran game developer and programmer Joe Waters passed away on Tuesday. He was a longtime fixture of the Seattle game industry, and will be missed. Game Developer news editor Chris Kerr is an award-winning journalist and reporter with over a decade of experience in the game industry. His byline has appeared in notable print and digital publications including Edge, Stuff, Wireframe, International Business Times, and PocketGamer.biz. Throughout his career, Chris has covered major industry events including GDC, PAX Australia, Gamescom, Paris Games Week, and Develop Brighton. He has featured on the judging panel at The Develop Star Awards on multiple occasions and appeared on BBC Radio 5 Live to discuss breaking news.
He also received a 2008 Game Developers Choice Pioneer Award (video above). Born in 1942, Bill Cravens, was a leader in the arcade and coin-op industry for many years, weathering a number of industry slumps. He passed away in his sleep on March 29, during the Amusement Showcase International show in Las Vegas. The companies Bill worked for or distributed include Capcom, Nintendo, Cinematronics, Universal, Pacific Novelty, uWink, Incredible Technologies, Bromley, Team Play, and Wurlitzer. He is survived by his wife Marylin, daughter-in-law Alicia, and two sons, Ryan and Todd, who both work for Betson, which currently distributes titles for Eugene Jarvis’ company Raw Thrills (Need for Speed), among others. Bill Cravens was involved in the American Amusement Machine Association (AAMA) and at one time served as president of its charitable branch, the American Amusement Machine Charitable Foundation.
His intelligent, programming talent and understanding of graphics rendering gave him immense value, but he was always treated everyone else as peers, no matter their background or profession. In these recent years, he has lead Seattle monthly industry nights that helped connect countless developers, from AAA to indie, from programmers to artists. He had a wonderful talent for helping people connect and has brought countless people together. Like his own friendship, the connections he helped established were deeper and more open than they ever would have been without him.
Our hearts and condolences go out to the friends, family, colleagues, and fans feeling this loss today. We’re certain the team at OnceLost Games will put forth a game that he would be proud of. Co-founder Ted Peterson, also a veteran of Bethesda, continues to lead the project.
The OnceLost Games team shared a touching post announcing the passing of Julian LeFay. He worked on franchises such as StarCraft and World of Warcraft during his first stint at the studio, which began in the 1990s and ended in 2005 when he departed to establish Red 5 Studios Inc. Former Blizzard senior director of story and creative development, James Waugh, described Petras as a «huge hearted and genuine» person who cared deeply about those around him. «Billy was an amazingly gifted artist who worked at Blizzard Entertainment for almost two decades. He was immensely proud of the work he did there, most notably as the art director for World of Warcraft and Overwatch.
Over the years, he made character and UI art for the studio’s shooters Dark Sector and The Darkness II, plus its contract work BioShock 2. Representatives for Raven Software and Insomnaic Games also left messages for Gass and his family. «Thor remains part of Raven Software’s enduring legacy,» the former company wrote in a statement. «His contributions, spirit, and presence left a lasting impression on all who had the privilege to work alongside him.»
Baer developed the very first console video game system, originally known as the Brown Box, but later licensed and sold as 1972’s Magnavox Odyssey, which laid the foundation for video games as we know them today. Baer, an engineer and inventor through and through, also developed the light gun, recognized as the very first peripheral for video game consoles, the interactive memory game, Simon, and other inventions. He’d been widely recognized for his achievements throughout the course of his life, such as receiving the National Medal of Technology from President George W. Bush, and an induction into the National Inventors Hall of Fame.