Legendary game designer and former Blizzard Entertainment VP Chris Metzen retired from the gaming industry a few years ago, but it didn’t take long for him to make his way back to gaming. Now, he’s launched his own tabletop gaming company appropriately titled Warchief Gaming.

Metzen has launched Warchief Gaming alongside another former Blizzard VP, Mike Gilmartin, who used to be the VP of Quality Assurance at Blizzard. The new tabletop company is cutely named after the Warcraft character Thrall, the former Warchief of the Horde in the Warcraft universe, who Metzen himself voiced.

“Mike and I had been wargaming together for years,” said Warchief Gaming Co-Founder and Chief Creative Officer, Chris Metzen, “so starting up a club where we could game and hobby with other like-minded geeks seemed like a no-brainer. This whole thing has really brought me back to my roots.“

Warchief Gaming Co-Founder and President, Mike Gilmartin added, “Chris and I wanted to build a space where we could geek out and do our thing. A place with a great culture and a welcoming environment. A place just to hang, even after the gaming’s over.”

Warchief Gaming already has a headquarters, they’re based in Orange County, California. Metzen and Gilmartin apparently started Warchief Gaming back in 2018 as a way for veterans to create a haven for tabletop gamers, in the Southern California area. Coming from this, transitioning it to a development studio just made sense.

Metzen and Gilmartin are already tapping former co-workers for more talent, including former Blizzard Entertainment game designer Ryan Collins (Hearthstone) as Lead Product Developer.  Their goal is to build their own worlds and products, while enhancing the community and elevating the services that gaming clubs can provide.

“I missed the creative collaboration I had for so many years at Blizzard,” said Metzen. “It’s amazing to get back to building worlds and telling stories with my friends at Warchief. I feel like I’m twenty again – well, my imagination does, at least.”