Rather key news concerning the fate and status of THQ has come out just before the industry goes into the always spectacular circus that E3 brings us. Things are still shaky for THQ right now but the company is doing their best to endure the tough times and release key titles like Darksiders II and Metro: Last Light. But moving forward we could see a different side of THQ surface as a key member of the company has left and in turn a veteran member of the gaming industry has joined the company in a key role.
After serving with THQ for the last few years and help bringing in games such as Saints Row and the forthcoming, at least for now, Guilermo del Toro helmed game Insane, THQ Core Games VP Danny Bilson has left the company. Kind of expected but still surprising at the same time, the exit of Danny is one that will likely result in THQ once again changing focus as a company or at least possibly lean towards a different direction in the games they release – a key example being less games in which massive purple sex toys are used as weapons.
Aside from shepherding certain projects within THQ Danny was also key in setting things up such as the new logo for the company and THQ Montreal which is headed up by former Assassin’s Creed mastermind Patrice Desilets. To say that the exit of Danny is a major one would be an understatement but perhaps he decided to bail out on an otherwise sinking ship that is beyond salvageable. An industry veteran, we could see Danny surface at another company shortly, but what’s interesting is who is assuming the mantle of President of THQ.
None other than Naughty Dog co-founder Jason Rubin will now be serving as President of THQ. Best known for helping co-create the Crash Bandicoot series, Jason has been in and out of the video game industry for the last few years as he has pursued other interests. But after a few years out of the game Jason is back in the big seat as he’s basically tasked with running THQ and presumably pulling it out of the rut it’s currently in.
Jason definitely knows how to run a company and produce fun games, but I almost feel as if he’s in a position similar to that of Barrack Obama or Kaz Hirai – he’s going to have to put in a lot of work to shine an otherwise tarnished company into something presentable again. Whether or not Jason will get a chance to make a difference at THQ is unknown, but I hope he gets a decent shot and doesn’t decide to cut too many games or do a complete focus shift for the company that results in complete doom.
