Obituary: Paul McLaughlin

Today the UK games industry paid tribute to career artist Paul McLaughlin who died aged 57 in December.

His career spanned over 30 years where he was most recently head of art for developer 22cans. He worked on titles such as Curiosity, Godus, and The Trial.

Prior to serving in that role he was studio art director at Lionhead for 15 years. At the company he was responsible for the development of the Fable and Black & White series.

As reported by Eurogamer, industry figures who worked with the career artist shared their thoughts on his passing, one of them being long-time collaborator and colleague Peter Molyneux.

“Paul entered my life back in 1990 when he started at Bullfrog as employee number four. He was the first proper games artist I had ever encountered. Immediately he became invaluable, an essential part of the many titles we all worked on. He absolutely made all the difference on Powermonger, Syndicate, Magic Carpet, Theme Park and Dungeon Keeper,” said Molyneux.

“Then, when Lionhead was set up, he not only guided Black & White, The Movies and Fable but also helped direct the company. A great artist, a wonderful mentor and an inspirational man.”

He continues, “Paul was a huge cornerstone in my life. He was a professional, moral and funny person who had the ability to see the fair and sensible approach in any situation. I miss him every day in every way. His legacy will be felt and seen for a long, long time.”

Paul McLaughlin is survived by his wife and three children.