Hi Everyone,

After spending years working on a game, the launch is always an exciting time. We are beyond thrilled to see the positive critical and fan response to Rise of the Tomb Raider. The game has been nominated for several awards, including The Game Awards’ “Best Action/Adventure Game” and “Best Performance”, and more accolades come in each day.

As we continue to grow our studio and portfolio, we have some exciting news to share: Ron Rosenberg and Scot Amos have been named as co-studio heads for Crystal Dynamics. Scot and Ron each bring a unique skill set and each will focus on owning different aspects of running a studio, while ultimately making all major decisions together. Both seasoned Crystal Dynamics veterans, Ron and Scot took over a few months ago, and the transition has been seamless. Now that we have a bit of breathing room after the launch, we wanted to formally introduce them in their new role to all of you.

Scot Amos

“I’ve been at Crystal Dynamics for an amazing 5 years, most recently as an Executive Producer on Rise of the Tomb Raider. I’ve been in the industry for 24 years, and immediately prior to joining Crystal I worked at EA’s Visceral and Maxis studios. While I greatly enjoyed my time there, Crystal had the allure of being on the verge of a dramatic rebirth. This was both in its work to reboot an iconic gaming franchise with Tomb Raider 2013, and also culturally refocusing as a studio that puts the player’s quality gaming experience first. It’s been a fantastic creative challenge that I’m proud to say we’ve risen to achieve. Looking to the future, I’m thrilled to take the next steps of growing our studio and expanding our portfolio, while continuing to foster an environment where our developers can learn and grow as they craft beloved products.”

Ron Rosenberg

“I joined Crystal in 2008, drawn by my dream to work on a Tomb Raider game. I’ve gained experience as a pivotal contributor on the Tomb Raider refresh, as well as championing the studio’s vision for a “digital short” that became Lara Croft & the Guardian of Light. I’ve been working in high tech and gaming for 20 years, including time at Mad Doc Software, now known as Rockstar New England. As an independent developer, I had the opportunity to work with and learn from many different publishers and developers across the industry. I love making great games with great people and Crystal offers both of those things. We’re always working to make the best game we can for our players, and I’m excited to take this even further in my new role.”

In other news, at the end of this year, Darrell Gallagher will be leaving Square Enix after more than 10 years with the company. Darrell has worked as Square Enix’s Head of Product Development and Western Studios, where he shepherded this year’s successful launches of Rise of the Tomb Raider, Lara Croft Go, Life is Strange and Just Cause 3, and queued up major launches for next year, including Deus Ex: Mankind Divided and Hitman. Prior to that, he was Crystal Dynamics’ Studio Head, where he led many projects including the reboot of Tomb Raider. Darrell has helped create so much incredible entertainment during his time with Square Enix, and we all thank him for his incredible contribution.

Echoing this, we wanted to share the note that our western CEO Phil Rogers sent to our company:

“Today Darrell Gallagher announced that he is moving on from Square Enix at the end of this year. Darrell became head of Crystal Dynamics back in 2009, led that studio to reboot the Tomb Raider franchise, and for the last 3 years he has led our western studios.  I want to thank him for his tremendous effort and contribution to Square Enix, along with the amazing entertainment he has helped create.  I am sad to see him go but respect his decision and we should all celebrate the sheer blood, sweat and tears he has put into our company over the last 10 years! We are excited for him and his family on their next chapter.  We wish them the best of luck in the future.”

To you, our fans, thank you for an amazing year. We’re looking forward to creating more exciting experiences for you in 2016. Happy holidays!

– Crystal Dynamics