Jon Laff Named Chief Technology Officer of 38 Studios
New CTO to Lead Development of Massively Immersive Entertainment Product
Maynard, MA, December 4, 2007 - 38 Studios ( www.38studios.com), a pioneering entertainment company dedicated to delivering a broad spectrum of entertainment products, today announced the appointment of Jon Laff as Chief Technology Officer (CTO). Laff was previously a senior systems engineer and lead engineer at Electronic Arts.
"38 Studios' mission in delivering online entertainment products is deeply rooted in being steps ahead in terms of technology, design, and ultimately - fun," said Brett Close, CEO and President of 38 Studios. "As CTO, Jon brings exceptional technical expertise and leadership experience that are key to not only what products we build, but how we build them."
With a proven track record in software design and technical leadership, Laff brings more than twelve years of experience to 38 Studios. At Electronic Arts Montreal, Laff played a key role in growing the new studio and in developing its first AAA IP title, Army of Two. At EA Los Angeles, Laff was the lead engineer on Medal of Honor: European Assault and the Xbox lead engineer on Medal of Honor: Rising Sun.
Prior to Electronic Arts, Laff served as a lead and senior software engineer at VR1/Jaleco Entertainment in Colorado, where he worked on MMO products Lost Continents and VR1 Crossroads, as well as other online titles including Ultracorps and Fighter Ace III. Laff has extensive experience as an architect and developer in numerous areas including online and networking, AI and animation, game audio and music, game authoring tools, optimization, game play systems, graphics, physics, relational databases, and game server architectures. He holds two degrees, a bachelor of science in computer science and a bachelor of arts in mathematics, from the University of Colorado at Boulder.
"Jon's past accomplishments and stellar reputation make him the perfect choice for such a key role at 38 Studios," said founder and chairman Curt Schilling. "Jon exemplifies the core leadership qualities any company must have to be great."
As CTO, Laff will lead all aspects of the technical vision which are critical to delivering 38 Studios entertainment products to market. Laff will report to Close and will be based at the company's development studio in Maynard, Massachusetts.
"With the company's visionaries and industry leaders such as Schilling, McFarlane, Salvatore, and Close at the helm, 38 Studios is laying the groundwork to become the industry's next major innovator," said Laff. "I'm looking forward to being an integral part of 38 Studios and to developing the next generation of online entertainment."
About 38 Studios
38 Studios, a media and entertainment company founded in 2006 by Curt Schilling, is in pre-production on an original fantasy IP driven by the creative and artistic visions of pop-culture icons R. A. Salvatore and Todd McFarlane. Entertainment products will include a massively immersive online entertainment experience that transcends the traditional MMO genre, novels, comics, toys, movies, TV, and more. For more information, visit http://www.38studios.com.
PR Contacts:
Andrea Schneider/Karen Blondell
917.769.6060/310.922.5838
38studiospr@gmail.com
kblondell@sbcglobal.net