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Matt Firor steps down as ZeniMax Online studio boss

Matt Firor steps down as ZeniMax Online studio boss

ZeniMax Online Studios president Matt Firor is leaving the company. 

The news came via a statement shared by the development vet on Twitter, in which he said that he'd be stepping down after 18 years at the helm. He is being replaced by studio head Jo Burba, as well as exec producer Susan Kath and game director Rich Lambert. 

"Together, this leadership team has spearheaded many of Elder Scrolls Online's biggest ideas and expansions and will continue to make this game something we're all proud of," Firor wrote. 

"While I won't be working on the game anymore, I will be cheering you on and adding to the thousands of hours I've already spent in-game. There are many more stories to be told, adventures to be had, and I know this amazing community will carry that shared legacy and success forwards."

This news follows word that an in-development MMO project, codenamed Blackbird, had been cancelled at ZeniMax Online Studios as part of this wave of layoffs, project closures and general tightening that is going on at Microsoft at the moment.  

Firor has worked at ZeniMax Online Studios since 2007. 


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PCGamesInsider Contributing Editor

Alex Calvin is a freelance journalist who writes about the business of games. He started out at UK trade paper MCV in 2013 and left as deputy editor over three years later. In June 2017, he joined Steel Media as the editor for new site PCGamesInsider.biz. In October 2019 he left this full-time position at the company but still contributes to the site on a daily basis. He has also written for GamesIndustry.biz, VGC, Games London, The Observer/Guardian and Esquire UK.