Chief game designer Paul Coleman has left Codemasters after ten years to move away with his family.

Coleman announced his departure via the studio’s blog. He said: “It is with a heavy heart that I come to you with some difficult news. Tomorrow marks my last day in the Codies Racing Studio as I am moving overseas with my family to embark on new adventures.”

After over ten years at the Southam studio, Coleman is leaving the company and country to spend more time with his family. Rally racers have dominated his career, starting with QA on Colin McRae titles in 2003 before taking the mantle of games designer for the first Dirt. His position escalated as the franchise continued, eventually taking charge of the franchise in 2011 as chief game designer.

Coleman added: “Taking the franchise through its many evolutions, working with incredibly talented developers and publishers and striving to give our fans the best rally game on the planet has been a labour of love and one I am going to remember for as long as I live.”

The departure shouldn’t weaken Codemaster’s strong position too much. The Warwickshire-based game maker was recently valued at $371m as the firm IPO’d, with sights set on bolstering the mobile side of its operations.