Josh Sawyer is 'taking a break' from directing once Pillars of Eternity 2 is done

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He's been doing this for a long time.

Pillars of Eternity 2 director Josh Sawyer has an enviable list of credits to his name, from Icewind Dale to Neverwinter Nights 2, Fallout: New Vegas, and Tyranny. But after two decades in the business, Sawyer said in a blog post that he's going to take a little time off. 

"I’ve said it in a few streams, I think. I’m now in my 19th year in the industry and I’ve been working on Pillars 1 & 2 for about 6 years," he wrote. "I’m going to be on Deadfire (not the DLCs) until we’re done patching and improving it, but after that I’m taking a break from directing for a while." 

"I’ve worked on a lot of party-based fantasy [real time with pause] games. I’d like to shift focus for my next project, but I need to work on something else, not as a director, before that." 

Sawyer has worked as a designer throughout his career but the move to the director's chair is relatively recent, according to Mobygames, which lists him as a director on Pillars of Eternity, Tyranny, and Fallout: New Vegas – Honest Hearts. He didn't indicate what he'd like to get into after Pillars of Eternity 2 is wrapped up, but it doesn't sound like he's looking to break away from games entirely, as for instance BioWare co-founder Greg Zeschuk did when he traded in his mouse and keyboard for beer (making me forever envious, by the way.) Instead, his desire to make games appears intact, and it's just the hassles of directing he wants to get away from. For RPG fans, that's good news.

Andy Chalk
Andy Chalk
US News Lead

Andy has been gaming on PCs from the very beginning, starting as a youngster with text adventures and primitive action games on a cassette-based TRS80. From there he graduated to the glory days of Sierra Online adventures and Microprose sims, ran a local BBS, learned how to build PCs, and developed a longstanding love of RPGs, immersive sims, and shooters. He began writing videogame news in 2007 for The Escapist and somehow managed to avoid getting fired until 2014, when he joined the storied ranks of PC Gamer. He covers all aspects of the industry, from new game announcements and patch notes to legal disputes, Twitch beefs, esports, and Henry Cavill. Lots of Henry Cavill.