Frontier founder David Braben steps down as CEO

It’s been announced that founder David Braben will be stepping down as CEO of Frontier Developments after 28-years in the role.

Braben founded Frontier in 1994 in order to “build a team to continue creating high quality, innovative games in the rapidly evolving games industry with an ambition that only teams of skilled professionals can deliver.”

According to a press release, Braben will transition into the newly created role of president and founder. This executive director position will see Braben “retain his leadership and vision for Frontier’s strategic direction, whilst maintaining and building key relationships within the games industry and the wider digital entertainment sector.”

Frontiers’ new CEO is current chief creative officer Jonny Watts. Watts has worked alongside Braben for the past 24 years and has worked at his current role for the past decade.

“Frontier is very important to me, and I am delighted to be able to pass on my CEO responsibilities to the exceptionally talented Jonny Watts, who I know will do a terrific job. He has the perfect combination of creative leadership and gaming vision to build on the excellent momentum in the business. I am looking forward to my new role at Frontier, and this change enables me to focus on our longer-term strategic opportunities,” said Braben in a statement.

Watts added: “I am excited to step up and lead Frontier into the next chapter of our growth. We have an amazing team and an exceptional culture of high-quality creativity and inclusivity. I’m looking forward to working with David and the wider Board to take us to still greater success. We look forward with great confidence”.

Frontier’s current senior director of operations, James Dixon will become the new chief creative officer.

Frontier are behind games like F1 Manager 22, Jurassic World Evolution, Planet Zoo and Elite Dangerous.

In other news, the host of Gamescom‘s opening night, Geoff Keighley, has announced there will be a “world premiere” for Sega‘s upcoming Sonic Frontiers during this year’s presentation.