Perhaps it was inevitable, but it's still a strange thing to type: John Carmack has officially left id Software. He will now be working full-time at Oculus VR, working on the company's virtual gaming headset.
The news broke via a report from IGN, and was swiftly confirmed by Carmack on his twitter feed.
"I wanted to remain a technical adviser for Id, but it just didn't work out," he wrote. "Probably for the best, as the divided focus was challenging."
"John Carmack, who has become interested in focusing on things other than game development at id, has resigned from the studio," said id Studio Director Tim Willits to IGN. "John's work on id Tech 5 and the technology for the current development work at id is complete, and his departure will not affect any current projects. We are fortunate to have a brilliant group of programmers at id who worked with John and will carry on id's tradition of making great games with cutting-edge technology. As colleagues of John for many years, we wish him well."
Carmack, who co-founded id Software in 1991 alongside Tom Hall and John Romero, had been the mastermind behind the developer's various game engines, from the early days of Doom and Quake, up through the new id Tech 5 engine, which is expected to run the upcoming Doom 4.
Carmack took on a new role as Chief Technology Officer at Oculus VR back in August. The parent company of id, ZeniMax, initially released a statement acknowledging Carmack's new role, while assuring that "the technical leadership he provides for games in development at id Software is unaffected."
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