A rumor that former Sony Europe Corporate Vice President Phil Harrison would be taking over Peter Molyneux’s vacated position as head of Microsoft Games in Europe has been confirmed. Microsoft made the official announcement this morning after several sources confirmed the rumor yesterday. Harrison will be responsible for overseeing Microsoft’s Lionhead, Soho, and Rare studios in the United Kingdom. He will also be joining the Interactive Entertainment Business team as a corporate vice president.
"I am excited to be joining the senior team at Microsoft at a pivotal time for our industry," claimed Harrison. "I am really impressed with the company's long-term vision for growing the market for interactive entertainment globally and also with the incredible wealth of talent, technology, and resources the company has available to succeed."
The position Harrison will now occupy was recently left empty by Peter Molyneux, the iconic mind behind the Fable series. Molyneux joined 22 Cans, an independent venture. Harrison, on the other hand, since leaving Sony in 2008 for Infogrames, had a brief stint as President of Atari before accepting this position. Harrison is well known for his work with connected gaming experiences, and he says that his goal to accomplish at this position is to try and bring in “Culturally relevant entertainment experiences to Microsoft platforms, now and in the future.”
