As the head of Gears of War studio The Coalition, and a part of that franchise for over 15 years, today we got the surprise announcement that Rod Fergusson is leaving his current role to join Blizzard. Where, as per his Tweet, he'll be overseeing the Diablo franchise.

Here's the announcement.

Starting in March, I will join Blizzard to oversee the Diablo franchise. Leaving is bittersweet as I love our Gears family, the fans, and everyone at The Coalition and Xbox. Thank you, it has been an honor and a privilege to work with you all. pic.twitter.com/0FuO3RFYSQ

— Rod Fergusson (@GearsViking) February 5, 2020

The announcement has been met with positive feedback from the industry at large and the Gears and Diablo communities, celebrating Rod's contributions to the AAA franchise (and the excellent work done on the most recent entry - Gears 5) and his passion for games that will no doubt make an impact on another long-running series - Diablo.

Rod's contributions at The Coalition will still be felt in the months to come with the highly anticipated release of Gears Tactics in April for PC.