Electronic Arts today confirmed the departure of Chief Executive Officer Frank Sagner and Chief Financial Officer Rashid Faraccia from Codemasters later this month in a statement sent to the site. GamesIndustry.biz (Across VGC).
The company spokesperson said exits “have always been part of the plan” but have been pushed forward thanks to the speed with which Codemasters have integrated with EA Studios.
Codemasters (developer of F1 and DiRT) and Slightly Mad Studio (responsible for the Project Cars series) will join the EA Sports logo. Slightly Mad will continue to be led by Studio CEO Ian Bell, while Codemasters will be led by Senior Vice President of Product Development Clive Moody and Senior Vice President of Publishing Jonathan Bunney.
The exit comes after EA CEO Andrew Wilson insisted that the company had no intention of turning Codemasters into “just another EA studio.” In an interview with the site MCVWilson said he wanted the British developer to retain its unique identity.
“Like Respawn, we intend not to go in and tame Codemasters; we don’t aim to step in and turn Codemasters into just another electronic arts studio; our goal is to provide more opportunities,” Wilson said at the time.
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