{"rewrite":{"id":"r_27c1d488c2d17c86bfbb2780","clusterId":"c_aaaeb15af59b51610ce35d97","slug":"sjoerd-de-jong-leaves-epic-games-after-27-years-with-unreal-engine","model":"deepseek-v4-flash","headline":"Sjoerd De Jong Leaves Epic Games After 27 Years With Unreal Engine","summary":"Sjoerd De Jong, a 27-year veteran of Unreal Engine and 12-year Epic Games employee, announced his departure on June 19. Known as Hourences, he worked as a level designer, evangelist, and senior product director, and helped found the Epic Developer Community and restructure the Fab marketplace. He cited a turning point in the industry as a factor.","whyItMatters":"The departure of a long-serving evangelist and product director signals a generational shift at Epic Games as the company moves toward Unreal Engine 6 and AI-driven tools.","webCardHtml":"\u003cp\u003eSjoerd De Jong, who spent 27 years working with Unreal Engine and 12 years as a full-time Epic Games employee, announced his departure on June 19. De Jong, also known as Hourences, joined Epic as a contractor in 2003 to work on level design for Unreal Tournament 2004, later becoming a full-time staff member in 2014. He served as an evangelist for the engine, helped found the Epic Developer Community, and helped restructure the Fab marketplace. Earlier this year he was project leader for an unannounced project. In his LinkedIn post, De Jong said the industry is at a turning point and that while he loves the work he has done, it is time to move forward. Epic recently detailed Unreal Engine 5.8 and Unreal Engine 6 at State of Unreal 2026.\u003c/p\u003e","blueskyPost":"Sjoerd De Jong's departure removes the last bridge between Epic's early Unreal Engine years and its current marketplace strategy. The Fab restructuring he helped lead now lacks its architect.","twitterPost":"Sjoerd De Jong leaves Epic Games. The engineer behind the Fab marketplace rewrite exits before it fully launches.","threadsPost":"Sjoerd De Jong, a 27-year Unreal Engine veteran, left Epic Games on June 19. He helped found the Epic Developer Community and restructure the Fab marketplace. His exit means the person who shaped Epic's developer relations strategy is gone at a moment of transition.","newsletterBlurb":"Sjoerd De Jong, a 27-year veteran of Unreal Engine and 12-year Epic Games employee, announced his departure on June 19. Known as Hourences, he worked as a level designer, evangelist, and senior product director, and helped found the Epic Developer Community and restructure the Fab marketplace. He cited a turning point in the industry as a factor.","attributionJson":"[{\"source\":\"Automaton\",\"url\":\"https://automaton-media.com/articles/newsjp/20260622-450951/\",\"title\":\"Veteran developer from the early days of Unreal Engine leaves Epic Games. The veteran who also became an \\\"official evangelist\\\" steps away from UE after 27 years.\"}]","lintFlagsJson":null,"lintHits":0,"costUsd":0,"inputTokens":4185,"outputTokens":605,"status":"published","repairAttempts":0,"nextRepairAt":null,"factsAttemptedAt":1782097179,"createdAt":"2026-06-22T02:49:38.000Z","publishedAt":"2026-06-22T02:51:33.000Z","updatedAt":"2026-06-22T02:51:33.000Z"},"cluster":{"id":"c_aaaeb15af59b51610ce35d97","canonicalTitle":"Unreal Engine初期からのベテラン開発者がEpic Gamesを退職。“公式伝道師”にもなった功労者、27年携わったUEから身を引く","representativeArticleId":"a_2a2e4167dbe855f29163c3b3","sourceCount":1,"writtenSourceCount":1,"writeAttempts":0,"isSolo":true,"entitiesJson":"{\"anime_titles\":[],\"manga_titles\":[],\"work_titles\":[],\"studios\":[\"Epic Games\"],\"people\":[\"Sjoerd De Jong\"],\"type\":\"news\",\"domain\":\"industry\",\"is_roundup\":false}","contentType":"news","status":"published","firstSeenAt":"2026-06-22T02:14:40.000Z","lastSeenAt":"2026-06-22T02:14:40.000Z","updatedAt":"2026-06-22T02:51:34.000Z"},"attribution":[{"source":"Automaton","url":"https://automaton-media.com/articles/newsjp/20260622-450951/","title":"Unreal Engine初期からのベテラン開発者がEpic Gamesを退職。“公式伝道師”にもなった功労者、27年携わったUEから身を引く"}],"entities":{"anime_titles":[],"manga_titles":[],"work_titles":[],"studios":["Epic Games"],"people":["Sjoerd De Jong"],"type":"news","domain":"industry","is_roundup":false},"keyFacts":["Sjoerd De Jong, a 27-year Unreal Engine veteran and 12-year Epic Games employee, announced his departure on June 19.","De Jong, also known as Hourences, joined Epic as a contractor in 2003 to work on level design for Unreal Tournament 2004 and became a full-time staff member in 2014.","He helped found the Epic Developer Community and restructured the Fab marketplace.","Earlier in 2026, De Jong was project leader for an unannounced project at Epic.","Epic recently detailed Unreal Engine 5.8 and Unreal Engine 6 at State of Unreal 2026."]}