Overwatch lead writer Michael Chu is leaving Blizzard Entertainment after spending the past 20 years working at the studio.

If you’re a fan of Overwatch, Chu was a major contributor to the game’s lore and story content. His other writing credits at Blizzard include the likes of Diablo 3, World of Warcraft, and the currently-in-development Overwatch 2.

Chu was the one who wrote the origin stories for many of the characters in Overwatch, expanding them through comics and short stories. These include the Ana short story ‘Bastet’ and Tracer comic ‘Reflections’, both of which initially revealed Soldier 76 and Tracer’s respective sexual identities.

On his personal blog earlier today, Chu wrote:

“Overwatch has been a life-changing experience.

I have always felt that games and the stories they tell have the unique ability to bring people closer together and that the empathy you feel from stepping into someone else’s shoes, even virtually, can bridge the gap between miles, cultures, and nations.

Overwatch and its consistently generous and inspiring community have only reinforced that belief.

I’ve heard stories of people learning a new language after hearing a line of dialogue, people feeling inspired to take a trip to a new place after ‘visiting’ it in-game, and people meeting teammates across languages and borders to take up the cause of making our world a better place.

But most of all: again and again, of people empathizing with a story about someone who is not the same as them.”

However, Chu doesn’t reveal what his future plans are post-Blizzard. Meanwhile, the company is currently developing Overwatch 2, which will feature a story-driven single-player campaign alongside the game’s popular multiplayer.

In a statement to Polygon, Blizzard said:

“Michael’s contributions to the games and stories of the Warcraft, Diablo, and Overwatch universes have been a source of inspiration, and we will always be thankful for the time he spent at Blizzard.

We wish him the best for the future.”