Codemasters' Raeburn leaves studio

By Games Industry.biz Published 1 October, 2009

The brain behind GRID and DiRT.

The executive producer of Codemaster's key racing titles has left the UK publisher to pursue personal projects.

Gavin Raeburn was responsible for overseeing the reboot of Codemasters' Colin McRae franchise and the Race Driver series, recently renamed GRID.

"After successfully rebooting two of Codemasters' heritage franchises as DiRT and GRID, executive producer Gavin Raeburn has moved on to pastures new," said Gavin Cheshire, vice president of Codemasters Development in a statement.

"Following the recent success of the award winning DiRT 2, it's positive for any individual to move when they feel they're at the top.

"He leaves having built an incredibly talented team that's led by key players who will drive our racing portfolio forward. He has my best wishes and our thanks for all the successes enjoyed during his time at Codemasters."

The latest DiRT game was released last month, scoring 8/10 on Eurogamer.

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Comments (31) Latest comment 2 years ago

Comments threads automatically close after 30 days, but please feel free to continue chatting on the forum!

  • ScottyXTUK #1 2 years ago

    So he was the brains behind the "Americanisation" of Colin McRae. Good riddance I say, give us a real rallying game with UK courses, rain, mud and snow!

  • cianchristopher #2 2 years ago

    Best of luck to him, I for one really enjoyed the two DiRT titles and GRID. They're excellent racing games!

    Any word on GRID 2 coming out next year?

  • Grom #3 2 years ago

    I'm sure a load of ex-Codemasters employees will by crying inconsolably into their morning coffees at this news.

  • Spekingur #4 2 years ago

    I really liked the rallying and trailblazer experience in DiRT 2. Saddened however how each track was just re-used for many events.
    Also, what happened to the really long rally tracks from the rally games of old?

  • MrMarbles #5 2 years ago

    Who's going to be the new alpha male?

  • Freelancepolice #6 2 years ago

    Who will drive the materattzis now?

  • turk182 #7 2 years ago

    mind u he also did this once upon a time.
    http://ww w.retrogames-db.com/Downloads/I...

  • laudy #8 2 years ago

    @ Spekingur

    Sadly, Dirt2 doesn't take its cue from rally games of old. There was a need to appeal to a different audience that enjoy glitz, glamour and "insane" jumps.

    Those of us that wanted a true rally experience have been well and truly marginalised in the chase for the Yankee Dollar.

    Perhaps Raeburn suggested to Codemasters that they could produce a proper rally game now that the american market has been satisfied. And then just got his coat and left...

  • linkster #9 2 years ago

    "So he was the brains behind the "Americanisation" of Colin McRae. "

    no, that was the brand team.

  • penhalion #10 2 years ago

    Codemasters: Gavin we'd like you to work on the next Grid.
    Gavin Raeburn : Er but, all i've done since I got here is racing games. I'd like to try doing a 3rd person action adventure.
    Codemasters: Is it called Grid City by any chance?
    Gavin Raeburn : Er not that I'm aware of.
    Codemasters: But it has racing and cars in it right.
    Gavin Raeburn : I'll get my coat.....

  • Moonprince #11 2 years ago

    (beautifully situated) Codemaster's studio

    hmm maybe for a day or two. Dull over prolonged periods of time however.

  • GreyBeard #12 2 years ago

    OMFG the infamous Vagina Burner (anagram) has left the building!
    Not a popular guy from everything I've heard over the years.

  • linkster #13 2 years ago

    Management's not about being popular. He was bloody good at what he did though.

  • StueyBoy16 #14 2 years ago

    They haven't made a decent racing game since Micro Machines on the Mega Drive IMO. Best multiplayer fun you can have.

  • Findus #15 2 years ago

    He was heading up the new F1 franchise I believe, so I have a question for those in the know if I may be so kind, could the leaving of a producer in the game affect development in anyway?
    Edited by 1 at 01/10/09 @ 14:36

  • Beano #16 2 years ago

    Bye Raeburn, thanks for ruining Colin McRae and Race Driver... don't let the door hit you on the way out.

  • Spekingur #17 2 years ago

    How could he "ruin" Race Driver GRiD? It's the first of its series and was (and still is) a pretty good game.

    And laudy, I just meant rally games in general, not DiRT specifically. DiRT 2 is an okay game, just not alot track variety and not enough rallying.

  • laudy #18 2 years ago

    @ Spekingur

    Agreed. Although it's funny you should say that there wasn't enough rallying...a recent interview on this site with the devs seemed to suggest that there would be more than enough. What they meant was, more than enough rally-cross...

    Dirt 2 is an okay game, but i just don't like the x-games stuff. Grid is an okay game, but i just don't like the drifting...
    You pays your money, you take your choice I suppose...

  • kangarootoo #19 2 years ago

    Seems a bit rich calling him "The brain behind GRID and DiRT". I'm not saying he isn't talented, but it takes more than one person to make a good racing game. What about the other leads such as design, art and code? Are they still present?

  • linkster #20 2 years ago

    "Seems a bit rich calling him "The brain behind GRID and DiRT". I'm not saying he isn't talented, but it takes more than one person to make a good racing game. What about the other leads such as design, art and code? Are they still present?"

    If it was a movie presumably you wouldn't object to the director being called the brains behind it?

  • Spekingur #21 2 years ago

    @laudy: I have finished every single rallying and trailblazer stage in DiRT2. Very little variety. Heck, even DiRT1 had more rallying tracks. The only things I have left is the Rally Cross, Landrush and Raid tracks. Rally Cross is quite popular though, in most countries, but most often you see it with banged up cars.
    Also, with GRiD, it's arcadey enough for most of my friends to like it during LAN sessions - especially with those who don't like the more proper racers. As long as we can have fun while playing it all the faults are miniscule.

  • tachometer #22 2 years ago

    "The brains behind GRID and DIRT"
    I didn't think there was any brains behind those 2, they were both a steaming pile of brainless chub!!

  • Chazmeister #23 2 years ago

    I'm with Laundy on this one, I didn't like the whole extreme sports feel of Dirt2 either. Or the drifting in Grid, or any other racing game for that matter.

    Just give me a straight WRC rally game and then I'll be happy. Or maybe a racing game where a third of it isn't given over to drifting events would be nice.

  • metalangel #24 2 years ago

    FuCK oFF and don't come BAcK! And take your central-pivoting X-games wank with you.

    Unfortunately, I think Codebastards will be truly lost now - nobody to continue moving these 'properties' in their strange new directions, but also nobody with the cajones to try rebooting them into what they once were - the best stock car and rally games on the market.

  • Nephirion #25 2 years ago

    bai

  • freedumb #26 2 years ago

    [link url=h ttp://www.eurogamer.net/articles/i_tocaracedriver3
    ]http://ww w.eurogamer.net/articles/i_toca...[/link]

    Before GRID and DIRT he worked on the TOCA Race Driiver series, some of the best racing games you'll ever play, the last being my favourite. Unfortunately it was runied by the paths the games have gone down.

  • Shikasama #27 2 years ago

    Does anyone else feel slightly dirty when corporate types talk about games? Yeurk

  • smoison #28 2 years ago

    I'm glad i'm not the only one who thinks 'Dirt and 'GRID' were quite crap when compared to thier originals.

    - RIP - TOCA Race Driver, you will be missed.




  • JensonJet #29 2 years ago

    This can only be good news for the Formula One game. Without this muppet to turn F1 into an arcade Americanised racer it now stands a chance of being ok. I agree with the McRae and Toca comments some posters have made. What this guy did at Codemasters is unforgiveable.

  • actionfitz #30 2 years ago

    He was also the man who banned laughter and headphones in the studio while head of the Toca games.
    (seriously).
    He reasoned that if you were laughing, you couldnt be working very hard. Also a firm believer that you cant listen to music and work at the same time.

    everytime one of those guys moved upstairs to the Colin McRae Rally team, you could see them nearly weep for joy.
    True Story.

  • metalangel #31 2 years ago

    Gosh. Sounds a bit like our new boss, who is a cunt of similar calibre.

    Maybe we can arrange for my boss, Kottick and Raeburn to take a flight on Big Bopper airlines?