Co-President Evan Wells Retires From Naughty Dog

After 25 years at Naughty Dog, the developer is leaving the studio.

On July 11, the game designer and programmer who led the development of the first three games in the Jak and Daxter series who is currently acting as the Co-President Evan Wells revealed he is leaving the studio. His message was also published on the Naughty Dog website.

He will step down from his position at the end of 2023. Little is known about Wells' future plans or if the news means his permanent departure from the industry.

Wells states he has been discussing his departure with other company leaders for over a year.

"This is something that I’ve been discussing with Naughty Dog’s Studio Leadership Team for well over a year, and with Neil for even longer than that. The decision brings with it overwhelming and conflicting emotions, but I’ve come to realize that I’m content with my time at the studio and all that we’ve accomplished together over the last 25 years," said Wells. "I couldn’t be more confident in Neil's ability to carry on running the studio. It’s the right time for me to provide the opportunity for him and the others on the Studio Leadership Team to steer the studio into a successful future."

He also shared in the message he was actually hired number 14 for the studio and now Naughty Dog has over 400 specialists.

"I’ve been making games professionally for over 30 years, and Naughty Dog has been my home for over half my life! I’ve seen this studio grow from hire number 14 (me!) during the Crash 3 days in 1998 to over 400 Dogs today. Every major life milestone I can track with a Naughty Dog project – I met my wife during Crash Team Racing, we took our honeymoon after shipping Jak 2, had our first child E3 week when we announced Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune, and our second child was born right in the thick of development on The Last of Us."

You can find the full message here. Don't forget to join our 80 Level Talent platform and our Telegram channel, follow us on Threads, Instagram, Twitter, and LinkedIn, where we share breakdowns, the latest news, awesome artworks, and more.

Co-President Evan Wells Retires From Naughty Dog

Join discussion

Comments 0

You might also like

We need your consent