In an announcement this morning, Naughty Dog President Evan Wells revealed some promotions taking place within the company. Creative Director Neil Druckmann was promoted to vice president of Naughty Dog. Citing his expanded role and input on critical studio-level decisions, Wells said that this is more of a formal acknowledgement of Druckmann’s longtime contributions to the management team. Druckmann will continue to act as the creative director for The Last of Us Part II.
In addition to this Druckmann’s promotion, Anthony Newman and Kurt Margenau are now the joint game directors on The Last of Us Part II. Both individuals joined Naughty Dog during Uncharted 2’s development, leading the design department at the company. Emilia Schatz and Richard Cambier have been made lead designers to fill the roles left open by Newman and Margenau.
Here’s the full statement from Naughty Dog President Evan Wells.
As we are kicking off 2018, we have some exciting studio news we wanted to share. During a recent all-studio meeting, we announced some well-deserved promotions:
In recognition of his expanded role, contributing on critical, studio level decisions, Neil Druckmann is now Vice President of Naughty Dog. He’s been a vital part of the management team for some time now, and we’re proud to formally acknowledge his involvement. In addition to his new position, Neil will continue as the Creative Director on The Last of Us Part II.
We’re also excited to announce that Anthony Newman and Kurt Margenau are the joint Game Directors on The Last of Us Part II. Both Kurt and Anthony joined Naughty Dog during Uncharted 2 and have been instrumental in leading the design department, and have been key contributors on our subsequent games. Emilia Schatz and Richard Cambier are the Lead Designers that round out the extremely talented design department’s leadership team.
We have such an incredible team at Naughty Dog, and I’m always happy when I am able to recognize those who have made an outstanding contribution to our games and the studio. Please join me in giving them all a big congratulations!
This news comes with little surprise. Druckmann has long had a very forward facing role with the company, and it seem inevitable that his long tenure and hard work would be rewarded. Are you excited to see Neil Druckmann vice president of Naughty Dog?
[Source: Naughty Dog]
