Ray Muzyka
Encyclopedia
Dr. Ray Muzyka is a Canadian entrepreneur
. He is the CEO at BioWare Corp as well as a Senior Vice President and Group General Manager of the BioWare RPG/MMO Group of Electronic Arts (comprising BioWare Edmonton, BioWare Austin, BioWare Montreal, BioWare Ireland and Mythic Entertainment
, now BioWare Mythic) at BioWare's parent company Electronic Arts.
in 1995 with the other co-founder and VP of BioWare, Greg Zeschuk
, after they earned their medical degrees at the University of Alberta. After selling BioWare to Electronic Arts
in 2008, Muzyka became a General Manager and Vice President at EA in addition to his General Manager/CEO role at BioWare, and subsequently became a Senior Vice President and Group General Manager at EA.
Muzyka and Zeschuk were the co-executive producers on Shattered Steel
, the Baldur's Gate series
(PC
), MDK2
, MDK2: Armageddon, the Neverwinter Nights
series, Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic
(Xbox
and PC), Jade Empire
(Xbox) and Mass Effect
(Xbox 360 and PC), released in 2007, a sci-fi action RPG based on another original BioWare intellectual property. BioWare released Sonic Chronicles: The Dark Brotherhood
, a DS RPG title set in the Sonic the Hedgehog universe, published by Sega
, in 2008. BioWare also created the 2009 release Dragon Age: Origins
, a fantasy roleplaying game for Xbox 360, PS3 and PC set in a new BioWare-created universe, and in 2010 launched Mass Effect 2
, sequel to Mass Effect. The latest BioWare project is another LucasArts collaboration, Star Wars: The Old Republic
, scheduled for launch in 2011. This is an MMORPG
style game.
As of 2010, BioWare has studio teams at five locations (Edmonton, Alberta, Canada; plus Austin, Texas, USA; its associated CS center in Galway, Ireland; the BioWare Mythic studio in Fairfax, Virginia; and Montreal, Quebec, Canada). BioWare is also selling content directly to its fans through the BioWare Community at www.bioware.com and store.bioware.com, with a social community established at social.bioware.com. BioWare also formed a new substudio based in Austin in late 2005, developing an MMO, Star Wars: The Old Republic
; BioWare and LucasArts
announced a partnership on this project in 2007. BioWare formed its new Montreal studio location in early 2009 and partnered with Mythic as part of the BioWare RPG/MMO Group of Electronic Arts in 2009. The BioWare Ireland location was announced in mid-2010.
In addition to his project development role, Muzyka has also managed the financial, human resources, operations, marketing and legal business side of BioWare, and has completed his executive MBA program at the Ivey School of Business, UWO
. Dr. Muzyka also graduated from Old Scona Academic High School in Edmonton, Alberta.
Muzyka was from 2001-2008 a board member of the Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences, and serves as a Director and Co-Chairman of CodeBaby Corp., another software company developing a next generation interface for digital media and the Internet.
An avid poker player who plays in the WSOP and other events each year, Muzyka won the inaugural DICE poker tournament http://www.bioware.com/biozone/articles/2006_02_21_poker_tournament/index.html in 2006 which featured a range of notable poker celebrities such as Scott Fischman
, Chris Ferguson
and Perry Friedman
, playing heads-up with Mike Morhaime from Blizzard
at the final table. He also became the only player thus far to win the DICE tournament twice, when he chopped the final table with three other players for first place again in the 2010 DICE tournament. He competed in the 2008 WCPC Main Event (CPT Western Canadian Poker Classic, $1600 buy-in Main Event) and chopped the final table with the final four players to take home the 2008 WCPC ring. He finished 374th of 7319 players in the 2010 Main Event of the WSOP.
Entrepreneur
An entrepreneur is an owner or manager of a business enterprise who makes money through risk and initiative.The term was originally a loanword from French and was first defined by the Irish-French economist Richard Cantillon. Entrepreneur in English is a term applied to a person who is willing to...
. He is the CEO at BioWare Corp as well as a Senior Vice President and Group General Manager of the BioWare RPG/MMO Group of Electronic Arts (comprising BioWare Edmonton, BioWare Austin, BioWare Montreal, BioWare Ireland and Mythic Entertainment
Mythic Entertainment
BioWare Mythic is a computer game developer in Fairfax, Virginia which is most widely recognized for developing the 2001 massively multiplayer online role-playing game Dark Age of Camelot...
, now BioWare Mythic) at BioWare's parent company Electronic Arts.
Career
Muzyka co-founded BioWareBioWare
BioWare is a Canadian video game developer founded in February 1995 by newly graduated medical doctors Ray Muzyka, Greg Zeschuk, and Augustine Yip. BioWare is currently owned by American company Electronic Arts...
in 1995 with the other co-founder and VP of BioWare, Greg Zeschuk
Greg Zeschuk
Dr. Gregory P. Zeschuk is a VP and Group Creative Officer at BioWare Corp. and Electronic Arts. He co-founded BioWare in 1995 with BioWare’s other co-founder and Group GM/CEO, Dr...
, after they earned their medical degrees at the University of Alberta. After selling BioWare to Electronic Arts
Electronic Arts
Electronic Arts, Inc. is a major American developer, marketer, publisher and distributor of video games. Founded and incorporated on May 28, 1982 by Trip Hawkins, the company was a pioneer of the early home computer games industry and was notable for promoting the designers and programmers...
in 2008, Muzyka became a General Manager and Vice President at EA in addition to his General Manager/CEO role at BioWare, and subsequently became a Senior Vice President and Group General Manager at EA.
Muzyka and Zeschuk were the co-executive producers on Shattered Steel
Shattered Steel
Shattered Steel is an action game released in 1996 by BioWare for MS-DOS, and later ported to Mac OS by now-defunct Logicware. It is notable for the deformable terrain effects, and for being BioWare's first published game.-Story:...
, the Baldur's Gate series
Baldur's Gate series
Baldur's Gate is a franchise of action role-playing games released under the Dungeons & Dragons Video Game Licenses. It is set in the fictional campaign setting of Forgotten Realms and takes place in its fictional continent of Faerûn. It takes place mostly in the Western Heartlands, but has also...
(PC
Personal computer
A personal computer is any general-purpose computer whose size, capabilities, and original sales price make it useful for individuals, and which is intended to be operated directly by an end-user with no intervening computer operator...
), MDK2
MDK2
MDK2 is a video game and sequel to the third-person shooter, MDK. The original MDK was developed by Shiny Entertainment and released in 1997 by Interplay. The sequel was developed by BioWare....
, MDK2: Armageddon, the Neverwinter Nights
Neverwinter Nights
Neverwinter Nights , produced by BioWare and published by Infogrames , is a third-person perspective computer role-playing game that is based on third edition Dungeons & Dragons and Forgotten Realms rules. It was originally to be published by Interplay Entertainment, but the publisher's financial...
series, Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic
Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic
Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic is a role-playing video game developed by BioWare and published by LucasArts. It was released for the Xbox on July 15, 2003, for Microsoft Windows on November 19, 2003, and on September 7, 2004 for Mac OS X. The Xbox version is playable on Xbox 360 with its...
(Xbox
Xbox
The Xbox is a sixth-generation video game console manufactured by Microsoft. It was released on November 15, 2001 in North America, February 22, 2002 in Japan, and March 14, 2002 in Australia and Europe and is the predecessor to the Xbox 360. It was Microsoft's first foray into the gaming console...
and PC), Jade Empire
Jade Empire
Jade Empire is an action role-playing game developed by Canadian developer BioWare and first published in 2005 by Microsoft Game Studios as a worldwide release for the Xbox. The later, two-disc Limited Edition contained extra content...
(Xbox) and Mass Effect
Mass Effect
Mass Effect is an action role-playing game developed by BioWare for the Xbox 360 and Microsoft Windows by Demiurge Studios. The Xbox 360 version was released worldwide in November 2007 published by Microsoft Game Studios...
(Xbox 360 and PC), released in 2007, a sci-fi action RPG based on another original BioWare intellectual property. BioWare released Sonic Chronicles: The Dark Brotherhood
Sonic Chronicles: The Dark Brotherhood
Sonic Chronicles: The Dark Brotherhood is a Nintendo DS console role-playing game based on the Sonic the Hedgehog franchise, and developed by Canadian RPG developer BioWare as their first handheld video game project...
, a DS RPG title set in the Sonic the Hedgehog universe, published by Sega
Sega
, usually styled as SEGA, is a multinational video game software developer and an arcade software and hardware development company headquartered in Ōta, Tokyo, Japan, with various offices around the world...
, in 2008. BioWare also created the 2009 release Dragon Age: Origins
Dragon Age: Origins
Dragon Age: Origins is a single-player role-playing video game developed by BioWare's Edmonton studio and published by Electronic Arts. It is the first game in the Dragon Age franchise...
, a fantasy roleplaying game for Xbox 360, PS3 and PC set in a new BioWare-created universe, and in 2010 launched Mass Effect 2
Mass Effect 2
Mass Effect 2 is an action role-playing game developed by BioWare and published by Electronic Arts for Microsoft Windows, Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3. The game was released for Microsoft Windows and Xbox 360 on January 26, 2010 and for PlayStation 3 on January 18, 2011...
, sequel to Mass Effect. The latest BioWare project is another LucasArts collaboration, Star Wars: The Old Republic
Star Wars: The Old Republic
Star Wars: The Old Republic, abbreviated as TOR or SWTOR, is an upcoming massively multiplayer online role-playing game based in the Star Wars universe. Currently in development by BioWare Austin and a supplemental team at BioWare Edmonton, the game was first announced on October 21, 2008, at an...
, scheduled for launch in 2011. This is an MMORPG
MMORPG
Massively multiplayer online role-playing game is a genre of role-playing video games in which a very large number of players interact with one another within a virtual game world....
style game.
As of 2010, BioWare has studio teams at five locations (Edmonton, Alberta, Canada; plus Austin, Texas, USA; its associated CS center in Galway, Ireland; the BioWare Mythic studio in Fairfax, Virginia; and Montreal, Quebec, Canada). BioWare is also selling content directly to its fans through the BioWare Community at www.bioware.com and store.bioware.com, with a social community established at social.bioware.com. BioWare also formed a new substudio based in Austin in late 2005, developing an MMO, Star Wars: The Old Republic
Star Wars: The Old Republic
Star Wars: The Old Republic, abbreviated as TOR or SWTOR, is an upcoming massively multiplayer online role-playing game based in the Star Wars universe. Currently in development by BioWare Austin and a supplemental team at BioWare Edmonton, the game was first announced on October 21, 2008, at an...
; BioWare and LucasArts
LucasArts
LucasArts Entertainment Company, LLC is an American video game developer and publisher. The company was once famous for its innovative line of graphic adventure games, the critical and commercial success of which peaked in the mid 1990s...
announced a partnership on this project in 2007. BioWare formed its new Montreal studio location in early 2009 and partnered with Mythic as part of the BioWare RPG/MMO Group of Electronic Arts in 2009. The BioWare Ireland location was announced in mid-2010.
In addition to his project development role, Muzyka has also managed the financial, human resources, operations, marketing and legal business side of BioWare, and has completed his executive MBA program at the Ivey School of Business, UWO
University of Western Ontario
The University of Western Ontario is a public research university located in London, Ontario, Canada. The university's main campus covers of land, with the Thames River cutting through the eastern portion of the main campus. Western administers its programs through 12 different faculties and...
. Dr. Muzyka also graduated from Old Scona Academic High School in Edmonton, Alberta.
Muzyka was from 2001-2008 a board member of the Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences, and serves as a Director and Co-Chairman of CodeBaby Corp., another software company developing a next generation interface for digital media and the Internet.
An avid poker player who plays in the WSOP and other events each year, Muzyka won the inaugural DICE poker tournament http://www.bioware.com/biozone/articles/2006_02_21_poker_tournament/index.html in 2006 which featured a range of notable poker celebrities such as Scott Fischman
Scott Fischman
Scott Fischman is an American professional poker player based in Las Vegas, Nevada.Fischman grew up in South Jersey and moved to Las Vegas at the age of 12. He was introduced to poker by a schoolfriend and went on to become a poker dealer at the Sahara and the Mirage...
, Chris Ferguson
Chris Ferguson
Christopher Philip Ferguson is an American professional poker player. He has won five World Series of Poker events, including the 2000 WSOP Main Event, and the 2008 NBC National Heads-Up Poker Championship. On September 20, 2011, the U.S...
and Perry Friedman
Perry Friedman
Perry Friedman is an American professional poker player who won the 2002 World Series of Poker $1,500 Limit Omaha Hi-Low Split-8 or Better event, a founding member of the Tiltboys and is a Full Tilt Professional.- World Series of Poker :...
, playing heads-up with Mike Morhaime from Blizzard
Blizzard
A blizzard is a severe snowstorm characterized by strong winds. By definition, the difference between blizzard and a snowstorm is the strength of the wind. To be a blizzard, a snow storm must have winds in excess of with blowing or drifting snow which reduces visibility to 400 meters or ¼ mile or...
at the final table. He also became the only player thus far to win the DICE tournament twice, when he chopped the final table with three other players for first place again in the 2010 DICE tournament. He competed in the 2008 WCPC Main Event (CPT Western Canadian Poker Classic, $1600 buy-in Main Event) and chopped the final table with the final four players to take home the 2008 WCPC ring. He finished 374th of 7319 players in the 2010 Main Event of the WSOP.
BioWare projects credited with platforms and dates
- Shattered SteelShattered SteelShattered Steel is an action game released in 1996 by BioWare for MS-DOS, and later ported to Mac OS by now-defunct Logicware. It is notable for the deformable terrain effects, and for being BioWare's first published game.-Story:...
(PC and Mac, 1996) - Baldur's GateBaldur's GateBaldur's Gate is a computer role-playing game developed by BioWare and released in 1998 by Interplay Entertainment. The game takes place in the Forgotten Realms, a high fantasy campaign setting, using modified Advanced Dungeons & Dragons 2nd edition rules...
(PC and Mac, 1998)- Baldur's Gate: Tales of the Sword CoastBaldur's Gate: Tales of the Sword CoastBaldur's Gate: Tales of the Sword Coast is a computer role-playing game in a high fantasy setting, developed by BioWare and published by Interplay in April 1999. Released as an expansion pack for Baldur's Gate from 1998, it adds about 20–30 hours of extra gameplay to the original game...
(PC and Mac, 1999)
- Baldur's Gate: Tales of the Sword Coast
- MDK2MDK2MDK2 is a video game and sequel to the third-person shooter, MDK. The original MDK was developed by Shiny Entertainment and released in 1997 by Interplay. The sequel was developed by BioWare....
(Dreamcast and PC, 2000) - Baldur's Gate II: Shadows of AmnBaldur's Gate II: Shadows of AmnBaldur's Gate II: Shadows of Amn is a computer role-playing game developed by BioWare and released on September 26, 2000. The game is the sequel to Baldur's Gate, and, opening only a few months after the events of the earlier game, continues the story of the player character, whose unique heritage...
(PC and Mac, 2000)- Baldur's Gate II: Throne of BhaalBaldur's Gate II: Throne of BhaalBaldur's Gate II: Throne of Bhaal is the expansion pack for the computer role-playing game Baldur's Gate II: Shadows of Amn, and is the final chapter in the Baldur's Gate series. It adds a multi-level dungeon called Watcher's Keep to the game and completes the main plot...
(PC and Mac, 2001)
- Baldur's Gate II: Throne of Bhaal
- MDK2: Armageddon (PS2, 2001)
- Neverwinter NightsNeverwinter NightsNeverwinter Nights , produced by BioWare and published by Infogrames , is a third-person perspective computer role-playing game that is based on third edition Dungeons & Dragons and Forgotten Realms rules. It was originally to be published by Interplay Entertainment, but the publisher's financial...
(PC and Mac, 2002)- Neverwinter Nights: Shadows of UndrentideNeverwinter Nights: Shadows of UndrentideNeverwinter Nights: Shadows of Undrentide is an expansion pack for Neverwinter Nights developed by Floodgate Entertainment and BioWare, and published by Infogrames Entertainment . It was released in June 2003...
(PC and Mac, 2003) - Neverwinter Nights: Hordes of the UnderdarkNeverwinter Nights: Hordes of the UnderdarkNeverwinter Nights: Hordes of the Underdark is an expansion pack for the role-playing video game Neverwinter Nights produced by BioWare and published by Infogrames Entertainment...
(PC and Mac, 2003) - Neverwinter Nights: KingmakerNeverwinter Nights: Kingmaker (expansion pack)Neverwinter Nights: Kingmaker is an expansion pack released for BioWare's Neverwinter Nights which includes three premium modules: Kingmaker, Shadowguard, and Witch's Wake...
(PC and Mac, 2005)
- Neverwinter Nights: Shadows of Undrentide
- Star Wars: Knights of the Old RepublicStar Wars: Knights of the Old RepublicStar Wars: Knights of the Old Republic is a role-playing video game developed by BioWare and published by LucasArts. It was released for the Xbox on July 15, 2003, for Microsoft Windows on November 19, 2003, and on September 7, 2004 for Mac OS X. The Xbox version is playable on Xbox 360 with its...
("KotOR") (Xbox and PC and Mac, 2003) - Jade EmpireJade EmpireJade Empire is an action role-playing game developed by Canadian developer BioWare and first published in 2005 by Microsoft Game Studios as a worldwide release for the Xbox. The later, two-disc Limited Edition contained extra content...
(Xbox, 2005/PC, 2006) - Mass EffectMass EffectMass Effect is an action role-playing game developed by BioWare for the Xbox 360 and Microsoft Windows by Demiurge Studios. The Xbox 360 version was released worldwide in November 2007 published by Microsoft Game Studios...
(Xbox 360, 2007/PC, 2008) - Sonic Chronicles: The Dark BrotherhoodSonic Chronicles: The Dark BrotherhoodSonic Chronicles: The Dark Brotherhood is a Nintendo DS console role-playing game based on the Sonic the Hedgehog franchise, and developed by Canadian RPG developer BioWare as their first handheld video game project...
(2008) - Dragon Age: OriginsDragon Age: OriginsDragon Age: Origins is a single-player role-playing video game developed by BioWare's Edmonton studio and published by Electronic Arts. It is the first game in the Dragon Age franchise...
(PC, Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and Mac, 2009) - Mass Effect 2Mass Effect 2Mass Effect 2 is an action role-playing game developed by BioWare and published by Electronic Arts for Microsoft Windows, Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3. The game was released for Microsoft Windows and Xbox 360 on January 26, 2010 and for PlayStation 3 on January 18, 2011...
(Xbox 360, PC, PlayStation 3) - Star Wars: The Old RepublicStar Wars: The Old RepublicStar Wars: The Old Republic, abbreviated as TOR or SWTOR, is an upcoming massively multiplayer online role-playing game based in the Star Wars universe. Currently in development by BioWare Austin and a supplemental team at BioWare Edmonton, the game was first announced on October 21, 2008, at an...
(PC, in development (Release: Winter 2011)) - Dragon Age 2 (PC, Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, 2011)
- Mass Effect 3Mass Effect 3Mass Effect 3 is an upcoming action role-playing game developed by BioWare and published by Electronic Arts for Microsoft Windows, Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3...
(PC, Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, March 6, 2012)