Ubisoft's Jason VandenBerghe joins ArenaNet

Former Ubisoft Montreal creative director Jason VandenBerghe has joined ArenaNet as its new director of design.

VandenBerghe landed his first creative director position Activision in 2005, the starting point of three years in which he worked with the Call of Duty, Guitar Hero and Spider Man IPs. He joined Ubisoft in 2008, where he worked on Red Steel 2, Ghost Recon: Future Soldier, Far Cry 3 and, most recently, For Honor.

In a public post on Facebook, VandenBerghe confirmed that he will leave Ubisoft to become director of design at ArenaNet. "It's a big step," he admitted, after describing the experience of "falling head-over-heels in love" with ArenaNet and its team after initially visiting "on a lark."

"I won't be making games directly any more - I'll be studio level, shepherding teams and growing people. I'm... sort of thrilled about how difficult that sounds. It's exactly what I want to be doing right now.

"I've had nine amazing years at Ubisoft. It has been the best experience of my career. In many ways, I was forged by that place. I leave it full of gratitude for everything I was given the chance to do there, a profound love for all the amazing people who make that place what it is... and a bright hope for the company's future."

ArenNet, which is based in Bellevue, Washington, is a subsidiary of NCSoft and the creator of the Guild Wars franchise. The company's last full release was Guild Wars 2 in 2012.