Diablo series head Rod Fergusson leaves Blizzard after five years

Diablo series head Rod Fergsson has announced that he has left Blizzard.

Fergusson, who was previously a program manager at Microsoft before working at Epic Games to lead on Gears of War, moved on to Irrational Games, 2K and Black Tusk Studios, before returning to Microsoft to serve as studio head of The Coalition and work on Gears of War again.

Fergusson then left the Coalition after nearly five years to join Blizzard and lead the Diablo franchise, but following the sale of Activision Blizzard he found himself under the Microsoft umbrella for the third time.

Now Fergusson has taken to social media to confirm that he has stepped down from his role as Blizzard senior vice president and Diablo general manager, in search of a new challenge.

“When I joined Blizzard five years ago, I had two main goals (besides getting my sword!): to revitalize one of my favorite franchises of all time, and to have a meaningful impact on the company I admired,” he wrote on LinkedIn.

“And it is with great pride and gratitude that I can now look back on this period of my career and say that not only did I achieve those goals, but having the privilege of leading this team alongside some of my favorite people in the world and shipping amazing experiences for our players helped me to grow – as a leader, and as a person.

“The Diablo franchise, in its almost 30 years, has never been stronger and more relevant than it is right now, thanks to the hard work of the many passionate and talented Diablo team members over these five years.

“From the return of a classic in D2R, to the bold leap into mobile with Immortal, to the record-breaking launch of Diablo IV and its first expansion Vessel of Hatred: each of these games form the foundation upon which the teams will continue to build the franchise’s’ bright future.

“I am extremely grateful for the honor of playing some small part in this extraordinary franchise. And as I prepare to leave Blizzard, and Microsoft, I do so with full confidence in Diablo’s plans, teams, and leadership. As for me, stay tuned, details on my next adventure coming soon.”

After five years of driving the Diablo franchise forward with four big launches, it’s time for me to step away from Blizzard/Microsoft, sword in hand, and see what’s next. The teams are set up for success, with an exciting slate of releases ahead. I’m incredibly proud of what… pic.twitter.com/Fsh4gjmgVl

— Rod Fergusson (@RodFergusson) August 8, 2025

In an interview with VGC last year, Fergusson joked about how fate seemingly kept bringing him back to Microsoft, describing it as his “third tour”.

“I told Phil [Spencer]: ‘Look, if you would have just given me $1 billion directly I would have come back, you didn’t have to spend all $69 billion’,” he joked to us last year about Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision Blizzard.

“No, it’s great,” he added at the time. “I mean, I love Microsoft and that was why I was there for the first two tours of duty, so it’s a great opportunity to be part of Xbox Studios and Microsoft Gaming. I’ve known Phil for 20 years and known Aaron Greenberg and Matt Booty for over 10, and so it just feels very comfortable.”