“Oh god oh god,” goes everyone. “What’s Carmack’s job title again?” Don’t worry – he’s founder and technical director. Rather, it’s ponytailed Quakecon fixture Todd Hollenshead who’s picking off the gibs and extricating himself from the tentacles of one of the world’s premier FPS studios. And it’s not just because he keeps getting Todd Howard’s mail.
“After many years with the studio, Todd Hollenshead decided to leave id Software to pursue other personal interests,” Bethesda’s Pete Hines told IGN. “While Todd was not part of the development teams, he was an integral part of id Software’s success as the business head of the studio and we wish him the very best in his future endeavors.”
Hollenshead’s departure comes as the business of id is being reshaped by outside hands for the first time in its history. Hollenshead’s role switched from CEO to president at the time of Bethesda’s acquisition in 2009, and it was Bethesda who made the decision to “refocus” the studio around the struggling Doom 4 earlier this year. A sequel to Rage is also rumoured to have been cancelled in the process.
The reason? As with Prey 2, the publisher deemed Doom 4 to be below the bar of “quality and excitement” they now expect from games in their stable (though unlike Prey 2, it seems id agreed with them).
Is Hollenshead id’s most significant loss since Romero?