Randy Pitchford steps down from Gearbox Software but will lead Gearbox Studios

Randy Pitchford has announced that he’s stepping down from the position of President of Gearbox Software. He’s moving away so that he can concentrate on other parts of the company, the main focus of which will be a new media arm.

The role of President will be taken over by Steve Jones, of of the developers of Borderlands. He’ll be leaving his role of Chief Technology Officer for this new adventure. Jones has been with Gearbox Software for 22 years, having worked as Technical Director for the first two Borderlands games.

Since Jones will be taking over Presidential duties, Pitchford is free to focus on the new media arm that Gearbox Software is developing. He’s also taking on the role of CEO and Gearbox Entertainment President.

Pitchford will also be working as President for Gearbox Studios, which is a newly-formed division that he’ll be leading. It sees the company move into the film and TV space, with the aim likely being to build up the Borderlands franchise ahead of the movie’s release.

According to a press release, Pitchford will still be lending his institutional knowledge and experience to Jones, but many fans of the company probably don’t think this is a good idea. Pitchford is notorious for making wild statements on Twitter that have harmed the company’s reputation with fans and press in the past.

Gearbox Software was acquired by Embracer Group this year for around $1.3 billion. The deal is almost certainly driven by the Borderlands franchise, which is incredibly popular. The games have been built so that they can be played for years, and fans enjoy them with long gaps between each entry.

Borderlands 3 has had the most post-launch content of any Borderlands game. There’s also a new spin-off, Tiny-Tina’s Wonderlands, which is due to launch in 2022. The game will be the next entry in the Borderlands franchise, but not a mainline one. Time will tell how good the additional media that Gearbox Studios produces is, and what it does to entice fans into enjoying even more Borderlands content.