Visionary Game Developer Brian Fargo to Retire After Wasteland 3 Launches

Legendary game developer Brian Fargo has announced his plans to retire from the games industry.

The creator will reportedly bow out of the industry following the release of his next massive RPG, Wasteland 3. Speaking to Eurogamer, Fargo said that he’s aiming to relax for once, following a lifetime of work in the game industry.

“I love this industry, but I’ve been at this since 1981…” he said. “I look at my friends, they have a lot more spare time than I do. It’s a very intense business. It’s all encompassing. It seems like I should relax for a little bit.”

In 1983, Fargo founded Interplay Productions just before landing his first contract with Activision for the graphical text adventure game Mindshadow, the same year. The game was eventually released for the Apple II and Commodore 64.

Fargo co-designed some of Interplay’s earliest RPGs, including the critically acclaimed Wasteland. Interplay had success as a PC developer, however they ran into difficulties adapting to the console software industry. Interplay was acquired by French company Titus Software in 2001, and Fargo left soon afterwards.

After leaving Interplay, Fargo wanted to continue working in the industry, as well as find ways to further his creative nature.

He then founded inXile Entertainment in 2002, which saw a consecutive number of successful releases. Eventually, they tried crowdfunding with a Kickstarter for Wasteland 2, which turned out to be wildly successful.

I’ve had the pleasure of meeting and speaking with Brian Fargo on multiple occasions, and I’m definitely a fan of his work. If there’s a developer who has earned his place in the gaming hall of fame (if one ever existed) and subsequent retirement, he certainly has.

Wasteland 3 is set for a release sometime in 2019 across PC, Mac, Linux, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One. The company’s latest RPG opus, Torment: Tides of Numenera, recently launched across PC, Mac, Linux, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One. Expect our thorough review of that game soon.

, ,

About

Owner and Publisher at Niche Gamer and Nicchiban. Outlaw fighting for a better game industry.


Where'd our comments go? Subscribe to become a member to get commenting access and true free speech!