Microsoft: Chris Novak is no longer head of R&D at Xbox

The head of research and design at Microsoft’s Xbox subsidiary is about to leave.

After almost 20 years of faithful service to the Xbox brand, Chris Novak leaves Microsoft: “I liked spending time in the company. Creating an end-to-end experience for players is a privilege. There are very few things in life that you can work on that inspire such passion in people all over the world. I love listening to the players and imagining the next moment of unexpected fun. video games are amazing. Xbox will always be with me. In the near future, my journey includes a period of reflection and relaxation, which I promised myself several years ago after an important event that happened outside of work. I will take the time to tour life and design wherever I can. If you would like to collaborate and discuss design, games or products feel free to contact me (regardless of the industry!). I’ve found that the best things I’ve seen or done in games have come from other areas, and I want to fully focus on that. I will always support Xbox, the user-centric process, and most importantly, the voices of countless gamers around the world who are looking for ways to connect with each other and the games they love. It is for them that we really work!”

Chris Novak Career at Microsoft/Xbox

Chris Novak joined the Microsoft Xbox team in November 2002, where he served as design director for seven years, working on the Project Gotham Racing franchise, Crackdown, and the first Forza Motorsport, among others. In September 2009, he became a Design Architect at Microsoft Studios, where he was part of the original HoloLens design team. He has also been a self-designer and has worked on games such as Quantum Break, Sunset Overdrive and Ryse: Son of Rome. Since October 2016, Novak has been Head of Research and Design at Xbox, where he has led efforts to improve and evolve the user experience across all of Microsoft’s gaming media.