Considering the rash of worrying employee departure news that’s been hitting Guild Wars 2 fans recently, a bit of good news is likely going to feel welcome. With that in mind, former ArenaNet dev Matthew Medina has formally announced his return to the game as senior content designer.
According to the Twitter thread posted by Medina, some time away and the recently announced Cantha-ish expansion drew him back to the game and to ArenaNet.
“I can now say that the existence of a third expansion for Guild Wars 2 was a significant factor in my decision to return. In both discussions with my former co-workers & watching with interest as a player, it’s very clear that the future of the studio & the Guild Wars franchise are markedly better today than how things looked a year ago. I can’t wait to return to Tyria with fresh eyes & resilient purpose!”
Medina is the second name returning to ArenaNet along with former employee Ben Arnold, who was brought back as a senior gameplay programmer. This comes after ArenaNet issued a wave of layoffs and saw a number of key devs and even ArenaNet’s studio head jump ship. Most recently, marketing VP Mike Silbowitz and game director Mike Zadorojny have left the company according to LinkedIn posts and insider sources respectively. Incidentally, ArenaNet is still yet to officially comment on Zadorojny’s departure.
