Former Daybreak CEO John Smedley leaves company

Former Daybreak president and CEO John Smedley has left the studio to start a new company.

He had stepped down from his position last month, with COO Russell Shanks taking over in the interim. The decision came shortly after a public dispute with convicted hacker Julius Kivimaki, who was found guilty of 50,000 computer-related crimes, some of which were against Daybreak’s games. Smedley expressed his anger over Twitter, which led to further attacks against Daybreak’s servers.

He had been expected to return to a new position within the company following some time off, but he has now left the studio for good.

Speaking to Game Informer, a Daybreak representative said it wished him well in his new endeavours. Smedley said he was not yet ready to discuss his new venture, but would make an announcement in the next few weeks.