The president of Arkane Studios, Raphael Colantonio, announces that he is departing the company. The developer is best known for creating the Dishonored series of games and most recently released sci-fi reboot Prey.

In a post published today, Arkane Studios president Raphael Colantonio explains that he is leaving the company that he founded in 1999. Colantonio has steered the company from the release of its first game, Arx Fatalis and through ZeniMax Media's purchase of the company in 2010. He has also served as the co-creative director on several Arkane games.

The departing executive explains that he has experienced both "magical moments" and "hard times" at Arkane, adding that he will "miss everyone" at the company. He feels "extremely lucky" to have been part of the company but now, "it is time for me to step out to spend some time with my son and reflect on what is important to me and my future."

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For those who love Arkane's work, including the Dishonored games and Prey, many will wonder what will happen to the company from now on. But Colantonio reassures fans saying that his "long-time friend" and Arkane's co-creative director Harvey Smith will "oversee" the Arkane Studios team in Austin, Texas. Meanwhile, Colantonio "will be around for as long as necessary to ensure a smooth transition to the new management team in Lyon."

The next game from Arkane Studios will be Dishonored: Death of the Outsider, which the developer announced at E3 2017. Out later this year, it builds on the characters and foundations of Dishonored 2 and will likely be released without a hitch. Although the playable character in Death of the Outsider, Billie Lurk, has some new powers and abilities it should not be a tricky task for the Arkane team given their success with the main series release.

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The real test for the developer will be after Dishonored: Death of the Outsider is released. It's unclear what Arkane Studios is working on other than the standalone series release, whether it is gearing up to release more Dishonored 2 DLC, another Prey game, or whether it plans to launch an entirely new IP.

Colantonio also says, "ZeniMax strongly believes in Arkane’s ability to make great games, and is committed to supporting the studio." With ZeniMax' full support, and the safe and capable hands of Harvey Smith, whatever Arkane works on next should be at the high standards that fans have come to expect.

Arkane Studios' most recent release is Prey, which is available now for PC, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One.

Source: Bethesda