Cryptic rises again? Former CEO Jack Emmert returns to the Neverwinter, Star Trek Online, and Champions Online studio: 'It was just meant to be'

One of the casualties of NetEase's retreat from overseas development was Jackalyptic Games, an Austin-based studio run by veteran MMO designer Jack Emmert. That studio's Warhammer project now lies in the unreleased MMO graveyard, but there is perhaps a silver lining for fans of the genre: Emmert has returned to his old job as CEO of Cryptic Studios, the creator of D&D MMO Neverwinter, Star Trek Online, and Champions Online.

On a call with PC Gamer ahead of the announcement, Emmert said that there's no hard feelings between him and NetEase over the Jackalyptic closure—"strategies change, and I totally get it"—but that he was "down in the dumps" until he got the call asking him to come back to Cryptic as CEO.

"I've been on cloud nine ever since, and it was just meant to be, I think," Emmert said about his homecoming.

Cryptic, which Emmert co-founded 26 years ago and previously led as CEO from 2011 to 2016, has itself only survived the 2020s by the skin of its teeth. In 2021, Cryptic wound up in the hands of Embracer Group, the holding company notorious for aggressively acquiring dozens of game studios and then doing its best impression of a malfunctioning cartoon contraption with bolts and springs shooting out of its innards.

In 2023 and 2024, a troubled Embracer substantially cut back Cryptic's staff and put primary responsibility for its MMOs in the hands of mobile-focused studio DECA Games. Last year, however, Cryptic split from Embracer in a management buyout alongside Arc Games, formerly Gearbox Publishing San Francisco (which itself was formerly Perfect World Entertainment, if you're keeping track).

Under Arc, Cryptic is running its games again, and consists of a mix of legacy staff and DECA Games staff who came over in the buyout. Emmert hopes to bring back some number of former Cryptic employees, as well.

"Cryptic has reassumed responsibility for its games, including Star Trek Online, Neverwinter and Champions Online," Emmert told PC Gamer in a follow-up correspondence after our call. "The DECA Games team members who were previously working on all titles are now part of Cryptic, and I'm excited to be working with them as over the years, they've been able to do a good job with each title. During the time when the games were under DECA, multiple Cryptic veterans were still working on the games and still do, which is great. So, for me, the team is a nice mix of new faces and familiar faces—however, I would also love to bring back some more folks who previously worked at Cryptic!"

New Cryptic games a possibility

After Embracer's staff cuts, the assumption among fans was that the studio was now in zombie mode—maintaining what it had, but never likely to release a new game. As rare as it is for any studio to get a new MMO out the door, it no longer seems like an impossibility for Cryptic: Emmert will be overseeing both the studio's existing games and "new projects," according to Arc.

"I want to make sure [Cryptic is] around for another 26 years and I want to come in there and I want to grow it," Emmert told PC Gamer. "And I'm not there to shut the doors or slowly wind down games or do any of that. I want to make sure that Cryptic is vibrant, and maybe it's had some rough spots, but I'm willing to join that team, and hopefully together, we can craft something new. It's not going to be the same, but maybe forge a new identity for Cryptic in both its live games and maybe new games."

For now, Emmert's focus is on supporting Cryptic's existing MMOs and convincing former players to return with "a huge push in trying to invite people back to experience these worlds again."

The returning CEO says that his 10 year tour of the broader MMO industry will inform how he manages Cryptic now. After leaving Cryptic in 2016, Emmert went on to lead DC Universe Online at Daybreak, manage the studio responsible for Lord of the Rings Online and Dungeons & Dragons Online, and also worked on a new Marvel MMO which, like the Warhammer game he was making under NetEase, never saw the light of day.

"When I founded Cryptic, it was my first job in the industry, and the success that we had—limited, maybe, but still success—definitely emboldened me to be more stubborn, because after all, my way was the way that this stuff got done," said Emmert. "And I think by going to other companies and seeing other ways and other methods, it really helped me defrost the ice that I built up over time, and become much more receptive, much more collaborative.

"And I hope that it's made me a better CEO, because I think, you know, at the end of the day, I'm a figurehead, and I'm trying to be the voice of the team and the players. Not so much, 'Hey everybody, do as I say.' So I think that's a big change in me personally. Coming back to Cryptic, I'm excited to see how that plays out."

Cryptic's games are all available on Steam, and are all free-to-play. The trio of online games aren't quite up there with the likes of Ultima Online and EverQuest in the longest-running MMOs category, but they've had impressive runs: Champions Online has been going since 2009, Star Trek Online since 2010, and Neverwinter since 2013.