Bethesda Softworks opens Battlecry Studios in Austin

Former BioWare producer Rich Vogel to head development at new studio

Bethesda Softworks has announced the establishment of Battlecry Studios, a new studio based in Austin, Texas which is set to be headed by long-time industry veteran Rich Vogel. Vogel most recently worked at Bioware as the executive producer on the development of Star Wars: The Old Republic.

Vogel has a long history in the industry having worked on Ultima Online, and Star Wars Galaxies as well as other online and console titles during his 20+ years in game development. The new studio is currently hiring other experienced game developers to fill key roles for an unannounced project.

‘I have always admired and respected Bethesda’s approach to making great, original games,’ said Vogel. ‘It’s a belief and passion I share, and I’m looking forward to building a team of high quality developers who want to bring that same commitment and creative energy to the games we’ll be creating.’

‘We are very pleased to have someone with Rich’s vast experience join us at Bethesda, said Vlatko Andonov, President of Bethesda Softworks. ‘Rich has a history of building and managing talented development teams and bringing high quality games to market, and we look forward to working with him on a new exciting project.’

What might we expect from Battlecry Studios? Well, could be that given Bethesda’s securing of the exclusive rights to the Fallout series this year, that Fallout Online is finally gearing up towards developement, especially knowing Vogel’s propensity for online adventure games. Then again, perhaps Bethesda are busily building an all new franchise along the lines of Arkane Studios’ Dishonored, due later this month and set to be published by Bethesda.