Adrian has been writing, criticizing and thinking about games since he first picked up an N64 controller many years ago. These days he writes reviews, news and features for Game Rant and believes that games should be held to the same artistic standards as books, movies and television shows. When he's not writing for Game Rant, Adrian writes more reviews for Sirus Gaming and likes to be nerdy about tech and retro games at HackerNoon. Outside of the gaming world, he spends a lot of time enjoying movies or listening to every genre of music under the sun. Follow him on Twitter for Dragon Ball Z related nonsense tweets, or check out Breadhouse Records for some tunes.
East Gears of War Designer Cliff Bleszinski is exploring a return to the video game industry after rediscovering his passion for creating characters, worlds, and gameplay experiences. Bleszinski, commonly known as “CliffyB”, is best known for his two decades at Epic Games, where he served as an original designer. Gears of War trilogy.
Gears of War veteran Cliff Bleszinski looks to return to game development
In a detailed interview with 80 Levels, Cliff Bleszinski revealed that he began to feel creatively inspired by video games while recovering from a difficult struggle with alcohol addiction, potentially leading to a full comeback. After experiencing an alcohol-related seizure in March 2026 that led to his hospitalization, Bleszinski says he stopped drinking, entered outpatient treatment and began therapy to focus on his health and recovery. East Gears of War Lead says that sobriety helped restore his creative inspiration, explaining, “I want to create characters and worlds.” While Bleszinski has yet to announce a full new game or studio, he has taken his first step back in development by consulting on the upcoming 3v1 asymmetric multiplayer horror project, Spirit Walker.
“It's been a journey… I don't want to be that person where my defining aspect is my drinking. I want to be that famous, hopefully lovable, successful game designer who's a great husband who's also an alcoholic.” – Cliff Bleszinski (Level 80)
