Naughty Dog Head of Technology Leaves Studio

Naughty Dog head of technology Christian Gyrling has left the company after 17 years. Gyrling was a veteran at PlayStation’s studio, involved in the development of Naughty Dog’s earlier games such as the Uncharted franchise and The Last of Us. His decision to leave is a bit unexpected considering that he just landed the role of head of technology four months ago.

Naughty Dog announced on Twitter/X that Christian Gyrling will be leaving the company after 17 years, though didn’t mention if he’ll be moving to a different company or simply retiring. Gyrling was announced as the new head of technology at Naughty Dog four months ago, replacing the former role held by Evan Wells. Gyrling’s successor as the new head of technology will be Travis McIntosh, another 19-year veteran at the studio.

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Naughty Dog’s statement on Gyrling’s departure reads:

“Our head of technology Christian Gyrling has decided to leave Naughty Dog after an amazing 17-year career at our studio. We’re grateful for his many contributions to the studio, our games, and his teammates. We will miss Christian greatly and wish him the best of luck on where his path leads next. Travis McIntosh, a 19-year veteran at Naughty Dog, will succeed Christian as head of technology.”

Last month, reports surfaced that Naughty Dog had been hit with several layoffs. The terminations were never outright confirmed, though it led many to believe that these layoffs were part of Sony’s ongoing attempts to restructure the company a bit and reverse its push into live service games. Sony officially revealed last week that it was delaying at least half a dozen planned live service games.

On the other hand, Warner Bros Games is confidently pushing ahead with its live service plans. The Hogwarts Legacy publisher announced last week that it will focus on live service games moving forward, which doesn’t bode well for upcoming releases like Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League; it already came under fire for its excessive games-as-a-service elements earlier this year.

Source: Naughty Dog