Left 4 Dead, Portal Vet Kim Swift Joins Airtight as Developer Seeks Broader Market (Updated)

Having previously led development of Portal and worked on both Left 4 Dead and Left 4 Dead 2 while at Valve, Kim Swift has left the studio and joined Dark Void developer Airtight Games as a project lead, the latter independent studio revealed today.

Valve's Portal and Airtight's upcoming Dark Void

Swift's role at Airtight will be to "build and lead a team in the development of games aimed at a more diverse audience," with the hire representing a "a strategic move" as Airtight moves into "new and broader gaming markets." Swift and her Nuclear Monkey cohorts garnered industry attention with the release of their 2005 DigiPen student project Narbacular Drop, after which Valve hired them to work on what became Portal.

"I've learned so much and had some amazing experiences at Valve," Swift noted in today's announcement. "But when I heard I had the opportunity to work on innovative titles with my friends over at Airtight, I couldn't pass it up."

Update: An Airtight Games representative tells Shacknews that Swift had no role on the January-due Dark Void, explaining "she is focused on future projects at this time."