Huge Firaxis shakeup sees XCOM director and studio head exit
Jake Solomon, the director of Marvel’s Midnight Suns and the XCOM franchise, is leaving Firaxis after more than two decades.
In addition, studio head Steve Martin will also be leaving the company after 25 years, publisher 2K announced on Friday. He will be replaced by chief operating officer, Heather Hazen.
“I’m embarking on a new chapter; however, I am incredibly grateful to have had the opportunity to fulfill my dreams at Firaxis Games,” said Solomon. “I’m thankful to everyone who enjoyed XCOM and Marvel’s Midnight Suns, and to my development and publishing partners who helped bring those games to life.”
“Jake revolutionized tactical turn-based games and continually raised the bar for storytelling in the strategy genre,” David Ismailer, President of 2K. “We have deep appreciation for his work and can’t wait to see what he does next.”
The departures follows the disappointing launch of Marvel’s Midnight Suns. While the game was well-received critically, all versions were heavily discounted within a month of release, suggesting that its publisher had been disappointed with its commercial performance.
According to recently published data, Midnight Suns failed to make a list of the UK’s 100 best-selling games of 2022.
Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick said earlier this month that Marvel’s Midnight Suns’ release window may have been a contributing factor in the game’s disappointing commercial performance.
Zelnick told Bloomberg “it’s possible the release window wasn’t perfect” but that he believes Midnight Suns could sell well in the long-term, like other titles from developer Firaxis Games.
Speaking to VGC last month, Solomon said that he had no idea about the future of the XCOM franchise, saying:
“I personally have no information on
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