38 Studios appoints new CTO

38 Studios has announced the appointment of Jon Laff as its Chief Technology Officer.

Laff was previously a senior systems engineer and lead engineer at Electronic Arts. At EA LA, he was the lead engineer on Medal of Honor: European Assault. At EA Montreal, he played a key role in developing Army of Two.

"38 Studios' mission in delivering online entertainment products is deeply rooted in being steps ahead in terms of technology, design, and ultimately — fun," said Brett Close, CEO and president of 38 Studios.

"As CTO, Jon brings exceptional technical expertise and leadership experience that are key to not only what products we build, but how we build them."

Prior to his work for Electronic Arts, Laff served as a lead and senior software engineer at VR1/Jaleco Entertainment where he worked on MMO products Lost Continents and VR1 Crossroads, as well as other online titles including Ultracorps and Fighter Ace III. He has experience as an architect and developer in numerous areas including online and networking, AI and animation, game audio and music, game authoring tools, optimisation, game play systems, graphics, physics, relational databases, and game server architectures.

"Jon's past accomplishments and stellar reputation make him the perfect choice for such a key role at 38 Studios," said founder and chairman Curt Schilling. "Jon exemplifies the core leadership qualities any company must have to be great."

As CTO, Laff will report to Close and will be based at the company's development studio in Maynard, Massachusetts.

38 Studios is currently in pre-production on an original fantasy IP driven by the creative and artistic visions of pop-culture icons R. A. Salvatore and Todd McFarlane.