Julian Gerighty, who has been in charge of The Division, is leaving Massive to join DICE

Julian Gerighty, a prominent figure behind The Division series at Massive Entertainment, has declared he is leaving the Swedish studio. This announcement came via social media, where he expressed enthusiasm for his next professional journey.

For years, Gerighty played a crucial role in shaping The Division, first as Creative Director for the initial two games and later as Executive Producer in charge of the overall series. His career also includes a position as Creative Director for Star Wars Outlaws. He recently hinted that The Division 3, though not yet announced officially, aims to be as impactful as its predecessor. Gerighty will transition to EA's Battlefield Studios and assume a role at DICE, another Swedish studio.

His exit coincides with news of staff reductions at Massive and Ubisoft Stockholm, an extension of Ubisoft's ongoing cost-saving measures which last year included a voluntary redundancy offer.

Thomas Andrén, Managing Director at Massive, praised Julian's contributions while noting his move to DICE underlines the collaborative and creative strength within Swedish game development. Andrén expressed confidence in Gerighty's future contributions to the industry on an international scale.

Leadership continues to be strong within The Division series with Yannick Banchereau and Mathias Karlson steering The Division 2 and the anticipated third installment, respectively. The return of Magnus Jansen, a long-time studio veteran, to guide The Division 2: Survivors is expected to reinforce upcoming developments.

Ubisoft is likely to unveil more information about its restructuring strategy titled "Creative Houses" by the end of the month. This transformation initiative has included significant layoffs and the shelving of several projects over the past few years. The initial Creative House, Vantage Studios, was launched last year with partial ownership by Tencent.