Ex-Far Cry boss Dan Hay is now in charge of Blizzard’s upcoming new survival game.
Blizzard president Mike Ybarra buried the announcement in an end of year update blog post.
“Leading the team which is infusing this genre with Blizzard magic while crafting our first new IP since Overwatch,” Ybarra said of Hay.
“The team has doubled in size this year and we’re looking to grow it even more in the new year!”
Hay quit Ubisoft last year after 10 years at the company, reportedly leaving a live-service Far Cry project in the process.
Hay served as a producer on Far Cry 3, before moving to an executive producer role for Far Cry 4 and 5, and the series’ Blood Dragon, Primal and New Dawn spin-offs.
Blizzard confirmed its survival game in January, saying it’s set in a “whole new universe”.
“Blizzard is embarking on our next quest,” the company said at the time. “We are going on a journey to a whole new universe, home to a brand-new survival game for PC and console.”
This universe is “a place full of heroes we have yet to meet, stories yet to be told, and adventures yet to be lived”, Blizzard added. “A vast realm of possibility, waiting to be explored.”
An accompanying piece of concept art shows two teenagers stumbling upon a passage leading away from their dreary urban home to a verdant fantasy world.
The news came as Activision Blizzard continued to reel from the shocking allegations it fostered a company culture where sexual harassment, assault, and inappropriate behaviour were able to thrive, with Blizzard Entertainment itself being called a “breeding ground for harassment and discrimination against women” in a State of California lawsuit filed last year.
