Blizzard’s Chief Creative Officer Rob Pardo is leaving the game studio Blizzard of his own accord. Pardo is regarded as one of the leading minds behind Warcraft III, Starcraft: Brood War, Diablo III, and Vanilla World of Warcraft. Thus, he has likely influenced how we play today more than just a few others.
As noted in a post on the World of Warcraft forum, Pardo departs Blizzard and the fans after 17 years with a bittersweet feeling.
Pardo had played a leading role in many of Blizzard’s classics and was currently involved in the development of Warlords of Draenor. He was also instrumental in Diablo 3. He is inseparably linked to the biggest MMO success in history, with World of Warcraft Classic. Together with Tom Chilton, who is regarded as a PvP guru, and Jeffrey Kaplan, a raid specialist nicknamed Tigole, who is now working on the mysterious Titan project, one could refer to Rob Pardo as one of the fathers of Blizzard’s World of Warcraft.
In 2006, Times named him one of the 100 most influential men shaping and defining our world. Moreover, Pardo had the dubious honor of appearing in the legendary Make Love, Not Warcraft episode of South Park.
Pardo reportedly looks forward to spending more time with his family and finally learning how to build a decent Hearthstone deck. He plans to spend the summer with his family, some video games, and contemplating what the future holds for him. At the moment, the gaming business is so exciting and changing that he is looking forward to his next endeavor with great anticipation.
