Stardock hires 'Fall from Heaven' creator to lead ongoing Elemental development
Everybody loves a comeback story, so let's hope this one starts for Stardock's Elemental: War of Magic with the hiring of Derek "Kael" Paxton as the studio's senior producer. Paxton, who's best known for the popular Civilization series Fall from Heaven (über mods he created using the game engine), will be in charge of Elemental's ongoing development and expansions.
The welcome news comes as Elemental tries to right itself from the consequences of a "disastrous" launch. Stardock's PR rep Stephanie Tinsley Schopp told Joystiq, "There will be a lot of news coming from the studio in the next few months, don't count us out."
With Paxton joining Stardock, it will be interesting to see if the company makes use of Fall from Heaven, perhaps turning the Civ mod into a standalone game running on a proprietary engine. Though no plans have been announced, it's an intriguing possiblity.
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Stardock Taps Fall from Heaven Creator to Lead Game Development Efforts
- Derek "Kael" Paxton joins Stardock -
PLYMOUTH, MICHIGAN – October 12, 2010 – Stardock Entertainment, developer and publisher of award-winning PC games, announced today that Derek Paxton has joined the studio as senior producer and will oversee Stardock's ongoing development and expansions of the recently released fantasy strategy game, Elemental: War of Magic (www.elementalgame.com).
Paxton is the creator and lead designer of the Fall from Heaven series of fantasy strategy games. Prior to joining Stardock, he was an external consultant for Civilization IV: Beyond the Sword and contributed to several of Firaxis's games including the recent Civilization V.
"This is the opportunity to marry my professional project manager career with my passion for game design," said Paxton. "I'm especially excited to work with the talented people at Stardock who have always been focused on creating great PC strategy games. I'm currently immersing myself in the world of Elemental, and I think everyone will be excited to see what is coming from Stardock Entertainment."
Stardock CEO, Brad Wardell, will serve as the executive producer and lead AI developer on Elemental.
Wardell stated, "Stardock has experienced continued growth from its various gaming and enterprise products as well as our digital distribution platform, Impulse. As a result of our loyal fan base and successes, we have been fortunate to be able to attract some of the top talent from across the industry. Derek brings to Stardock a unique blend of strategy game design knowledge and a great deal of project management experience from his non-gaming career."
As with all Stardock releases, the company is dedicated to providing post-release support for Elemental: War of Magic with free updates to enhance game play and ensure that the game evolves over time to its full potential.
About Elemental: War of Magic
Elemental: War of Magic is a PC strategy game set in a fantasy world that puts the player in command of a growing Kingdom or Empire bent on expanding their influence across the world. Players build cities, raise armies, research technologies, go on quests, recruit heroes, negotiate treaties, learn spells and much more in this epic strategy game. Visit www.elementalgame.com for the complete Elemental: War of Magic experience.
About Impulse
Impulse is a digital distribution platform that allows users to purchase and download the latest PC games, software applications, utilities, and much more. Its partners include Electronic Arts, Activision, Ubisoft, Paradox Interactive, Bethesda, Atari, and many more. Visit www.impulsedriven.com for more information.
About Stardock
Stardock is one of the world's leading developers and publishers of PC games and desktop software. Its PC games include Sins of a Solar Empire as well as the Galactic Civilizations series. Its desktop software includes Object Desktop, WindowBlinds, and a host of other programs for customizing the Windows experience. Its software can be found on most new Dell PCs as well as HP and other PC makers. Learn more about Stardock by visiting www.stardock.com.
