Naughty Dog president retires after 25 years at the studio

Evan Wells is probably not a man those of you who are casual gamers have seen or heard much about, as he's been mostly working behind the scenes for more than 15 years. That's not to say he hasn't been extremely important, as he's been a pivotal part of Naughty Dog and PlayStation's giant successes with Uncharted and The Last of Us. That's why tonight's news are very interesting.

Wells has announced he's retiring as co-president of Naughty Dog at the end of the year, which makes it sound like he won't continue in the games industry after spending 25 years at the studio that has given us many Crash Bandicoot, Jak and Daxter, Uncharted and The Last of Us games.

It'll be very fascinating to see if this leads to any changes at Naughty Dog. Being the president of "the kennel" for 18 years obviously means he was a very important part of the studio's move from more cartoony and child-friendly games to the mature and story-focused titles it's known for today. He makes it sound like Neil Druckmann, who was promoted to co-president three years ago, will become sole president, but I'm guessing that's temporary, because Druckmann already has his hands full with a new game and the making of season 2 of HBO's The Last of Us. Then it would be almost impossible to also be the only president of a studio that is working on at least two other games. Nonetheless, enjoy your retirement, Evan. You definitely deserve it.