Warhammer Co-Creator Bryan Ansell Has Died

thegamer.com:

Bryan Ansell, the game designer who co-created the Warhammer series, has died at the age of 68. This news comes from his wife, who says that Ansell, "passed away peacefully at home" on December 30, surrounded by his family.

Ansell co-authored the first edition of Warhammer, then called Warhammer Fantasy Battle, while working as the managing director of Games Workshop. Alongside Richard Halliwell and Rick Priestley, Ansell published the first edition in 1983, laying the groundwork for an RPG franchise that has spread across multiple mediums over the past few decades.

As reported by Wargamer, Ansell started in the industry in 1976, later moving to Games Workshop. At the latter, he was a key figure behind the creation of Warhammer, and pivoted Games Workshop to focusing on this new series.

Ansell stepped back from Games Workshop in 1991, but left behind a leading manufacturer of wargames, and a company that continues to operate today. Of course, it's best known for its Warhammer releases, which wouldn't have been possible without Ansell's contributions to Warhammer Fantasy Battle all those years ago. What started as a bid to encourage the sale of miniatures has now led to one of the most successful miniature wargame series in the world, thanks to Warhammer 40K.

Tributes are pouring in from across the gaming community, with many expressing gratitude to Ansell for his contributions to the industry.

Ian Livingston, who worked alongside Ansell at Games Workshop, has joined fans and other members of the industry in paying tribute to Ansell. "He was a craftsman and dynamic entrepreneur who drove the growth of GW to the next level," says Livingston. "Without Bryan, Warhammer would not have launched."

Others in the gaming industry