Midnight Suns, Civilization and XCOM icon Jake Solomon leaves Firaxis

pcgamesn.com:

Jake Solomon, the designer and director behind several iconic strategy games including Marvel’s Midnight Suns, the Civilization series, and XCOM is leaving Firaxis, as the company appoints a new studio head, and Solomon embarks on a “new chapter.”

It’s been a big day of news for Firaxis, as the studio has also confirmed that Civilization 7 is officially in development. Meanwhile, Jake Solomon, who joined Firaxis in 2000, has announced his departure.

Solomon has served as the director and design lead on some of the most successful strategy and turn-based games of the last two decades, most recently acting as creative director on superhero game Midnight Suns – as noted in our own Midnight Suns review, this was one of the standout hits of 2022.

Now, the game development icon is leaving Firaxis, saying that the company has allowed him to fulfil “lifelong dreams.”

“After 23 wonderful years, I’m moving on from Firaxis,” Solomon says. “I’m a big dreamer, and I fulfilled two lifelong dreams in making XCOM and Marvel’s Midnight Suns. I’m the luckiest kid who ever lived. I’m grateful to Sid [Meier, Firaxis co-founder] first and foremost for teaching me. If I’m ever half as good as him, I will be twice as good as I am now.

“I’m grateful to my Firaxis teammates, past and present…I’m grateful to 2K for always believing in the dreams…and I’m so thankful to everyone who enjoyed XCOM and Marvel’s Midnight Suns. My brain is on fire with a new dream. Time to go chase it.” You can see the full statement from Solomon below.

In a separate statement, received by PCGamesN, Solomon says he is embarking on a “new chapter,” and “thankful to everyone who enjoyed XCOM and Marvel’s Midnight Suns, and to my development and publishing partners who