BioWare - Mike Laidlaw leaves

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HiddenX

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After 14 years Mike Laidlaw leaves Bioware. He posted on Twitter:

Hey Everyone,

It’s with a mix of emotions that I’m announcing my time with BioWare has ended. After 14 years and a chance to work on Jade Empire, Mass Effect and all things Dragon Age it’s time for me to move on.

In my time at BioWare I have been lucky to work with some of the most talented and hardworking people in the industry. It’s been an honor to be a part ofthe Dragon Age team, and I have every confidence that the world we’ve created together is in good hands and I'm excited for the road ahead.

For the near future, I plan to spend my time reconnecting with all the amazing games and worlds that my peers have created, and I look forward to sharing those experiences with you all on Twitch and Twitter.

To everyone who’s taken the time to share feedback and experiences, your amazing cosplays and artistic creations: thank you. You’ve made my time "in Thedas" amazing. Your passion inspires and I look forward to our next adventure together.

Ma serannas.
-Mike
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More information.
 
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Did he take the awesome button with him? Someone should check his cardboard box on the way out.
 
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Is there anyone left at Bioware that has any talent at all?
 
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Philistine said:
Is there anyone left at Bioware that has any talent at all?
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Considering 30% of the KoTOR team is still there after 15 years, I guess so (Mike joined after KoTOR might I add).

Statistically, they shouldn't have that many with more than 10 years at the same place because game dev stays on average 3 years at one company (less for QA, a bit more for programmers), yet James Ohlen and Mark Darrah have been at BioWare for over 20 years aka worked on BG1* (and Darrah commented on his 20th anniversary that there was a few people with more time at BioWare than him, I think it was 6 persons).

Laidlaw was probably a good manager but he wasn't much into party based tactical RPGs guy. He started as lead writer on Jade Empire, but left mid-way to go work on Mass Effect as a producer, then was moved to creative director for Dragon Age 2…and made that infamous comment about "awesome buttons".

*A note about BG1, about 30 people worked on it at BioWare and of those like 12 stayed for their next games.
 
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Capt. Huggy Face said:
Did he take the awesome button with him? Someone should check his cardboard box on the way out.
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Actually it was David Silverman who gave the infamous button awesome interview. :)
 
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Is it a coincidence that his hiring was about the same time I stopped buying Bioware games? Probably?
 
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Mike was the last "idiot" from the Amazing Old Team to leave. Bioware is now an empty dry shell.
 
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If Bioware is still Edmonton based then its likely that there are not too many options for people to go elsewhere. Its not that big of a city in a hot bed of tech.
 
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Maybe this is limited to Bioware employees on twitter, but they are all seem to have fetish for blue hair, communism and cats!
 
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lostforever said:
Maybe this is limited to Bioware employees on twitter, but they are all seem to have fetish for blue hair, communism and cats!
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I don't see how those 3 have anything in common unless you think women prefer communism over other ruling systems.
 
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Archangel said:
I don't see how those 3 have anything in common unless you think women prefer communism over other ruling systems.
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You better hope that Bioware employees (at least the ones on Twitter) don't see your post since you just assumed their gender! :p
 
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Dunno what women prefer nor know what gender Bioware employees are, but I prefer ruling where publishers are forced by laws to reveal dropchance of every single item from lootboxes and where facebook is banned.
Oddly, in that cuntry the system is communism (not really, it's socialism, but I'll adapt to general ignorance for better understanding).
 
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joxer said:
Dunno what women prefer, but I prefer ruling where publishers are forced by laws to reveal dropchance of every single item from lootboxes and where facebook is banned.
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You should move to China then. I think Facebook is banned or no one sues it and they have publish chance with loot boxes by law there!
 
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I would, but while the devil is not black, there is something going on there I'm allergic on - the excessive censorship.

Dare to go graphic too much (both nudity or violence) or dare to criticize the society through works of fiction, it'll instantly get banned.
China is one of rare countries that still bans masterpieces like Death Note.

I'd rather live in a slavery system, I'd rather accept being abused, if there is no censoring imagination. So there.
 
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Why all the insults and hate? This guy wasn't supposed to manage the coms (commercial, communication) nor the budget (I doubt he had a lot of weight on that).

DAO is no way a bad achievement, neither is ME2. Not even ME3, the final not only is just the final, but got an optional DLC for a variation of the final, all the fuss was ridiculous. DA2 was non sense and some people deciding got mad or blind, but there's no evidence this guy was that much a culprit.

Myself I see it's one more rpg genre that lost, and I don't get the hate and obsession level. Have mass of Skyrim cloning isn't a solution.

At end it's less RPG for those with more open tastes, and from recent EA com, it looks like for them NWN1&2, ME first trilogy, DA1&2, TW1&2, and some more is a dead genre.
 
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I certainly have no beef with the guy. It's quite likely he was instrumental in some games I enjoyed.
 
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azarhal said:
Laidlaw was probably a good manager but he wasn't much into party based tactical RPGs guy. He started as lead writer on Jade Empire, but left mid-way to go work on Mass Effect as a producer, then was moved to creative director for Dragon Age 2…and made that infamous comment about "awesome buttons".
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He was also co lead designer on DAO, together with James Ohlen and Brent Knowles.
 
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