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Days Gone lead joins Crystal Dynamics as new design director

Jeff Ross has moved on from Bend Studio to Crystal Dynamics alongside the reveal of a new Tomb Raider being made on Unreal Engine 5.

TJ Denzer

April 5, 2022 1:05 PM

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PlayStation Studio developer Bend Studio recently lost veteran talent in Days Gone game director Jeff Ross and writer/director John Garvin, who were vocal about internal conflict over what Bend Studio would be doing next. It looks like Ross is casting his lot elsewhere, having announced his move over to Square Enix developer Crystal Dynamics following the latter’s announcement of a new Tomb Raider game in the works on Unreal Engine 5.

Jeff Ross announced his move over to Crystal Dynamics as its new design director alongside repping a number of open job positions via his personal Twitter on April 5, 2022. Ross was previously at various positions with PlayStation Studios since the mid-1990s where Bend Studio was previously known as Eidetic. Unfortunately, it seemed there was some conflict over what Bend Studio was working on. For instance, the team was interested in pursuing a Days Gone 2, but Sony passed on the idea and Bend Studio was regulated to assisting in work on The Last of Us franchise. This may have very contributed to Ross and Garvin’s exit.

I'm excited to announce I now work at the amazing Crystal Dynamics as Design Director. That's all I can say other than I'm thrilled with the project, and especially the team of really wonderful people.

I will become a Seattleite this summer.

Also--Come work with me! https://t.co/HjDFIFk7MF

— Jeff Ross (@JakeRocket) April 5, 2022

Ross’s move over to Crystal Dynamics comes with a major announcement at the studio. Today, Crystal Dynamics announced it was actively working on a new Tomb Raider with Unreal Engine 5 as the foundation. It is unknown if Ross will be directly moving into work on the project. However, Crystal Dynamics also announced a number of job openings that are presumedly related to the project.

Nonetheless, with Ross onboard, Crystal Dynamics gains a major veteran in the gaming industry with decades of PlayStation experience behind him. As Ross and Crystal Dynamics begin to work together on the studio’s future in Unreal Engine 5, stay tuned for further updates and reveals right here at Shacknews. We’ll share more on the new Tomb Raider as details become available.

TJ Denzer

Senior News Editor

TJ Denzer is a player and writer with a passion for games that has dominated a lifetime. He found his way to the Shacknews roster in late 2019 and has worked his way to Senior News Editor since. Between news coverage, he also aides notably in livestream projects like the indie game-focused Indie-licious, the Shacknews Stimulus Games, and the Shacknews Dump. You can reach him at tj.denzer@shacknews.com and also find him on Twitter @JohnnyChugs.