Runic founders Baldree and Schaefer leaving to go indie

Travis Baldree and Erich Schaefer (pictured), founders of Torchlight developer Runic Games, are leaving the company to start over again as a smaller team. Posting on the Runic forums, Baldree noted that their split from Runic is amicable, and that the pair are now looking to go back to smaller-scale development. "Working within the boundaries of limited means and resources is the best fun I've ever had," he notes, "and that sort of work satisfies me in a fundamental way - I can't wait to be working that way again." The duo will leave Runic on April 2, although they didn't yet reveal what they plan to work on after Runic, or what their new studio will be called. Baldree thanked the team at Runic and parent company Perfect World. Baldress and Schaefer founded Runic back in 2008 alongside Max Schaefer and Peter Hu, and released the highly-lauded Torchlight in 2009.