Johan Pilestedt, founder of Arrowhead Game Studios, has announced via X that he is stepping down as CEO and transitioning into a new role as Chief Creative Officer.
Pilestedt has appointed Shams Jorjani, a gaming industry veteran with 12 years at Paradox Interactive, as new CEO of Arrowhead Game Studios.
In an interview with GIBiz, Pilestedt discussed his background, the development of Helldivers 2 and earlier projects, and the selection of Shams Jorjani as the new CEO.
Pilestedt stated: “When it comes to the overall direction of the organization, I am still the chairman. So, me and Shams are still going to have strategic conversations on how [we are] going to take Arrowhead into the future.”
Jorjani added in: “My job is to enable him and the other creative people to be able to do more games. And that’s also what matters to the players. I play Helldivers and I hear my friends ask… ‘are we going to get more stuff?’ And I’m like ‘yes, soon, because Johan will have more time to do it’. ‘We want more enemies!’ I’ll tell Johan.”
The success of Helldivers 2
Helldivers 2 has become a massive hit, selling over 12 million copies since its release in February this year. This remarkable achievement not only makes it one of the most successful titles in recent years, significantly surpassing the impressive benchmarks set by games like God of War Ragnarök, which has sold 15 million copies since its launch in November 2022, but also vastly outshines its predecessor.
The first Helldivers game, which was released in March 2015, sold only 4 million copies in total.
Helldivers 2 has sold 12 million copies in just three months.
