Michael Forgey, Shadow of Mordor & Gears Of War Producer, Has Passed Away

Michael Forgey, an executive producer at Monolith Productions, has passed away due to glioblastoma.

Michael Forgey is best known as executive producer on Monolith’s Middle-Earth: Shadow of Mordor. Prior to his stint at Monolith, he worked on many products and games for Microsoft, first as test lead, and then as producer.

His game producers credit include Gears of War, Gears of War 2, Gears of War: Ultimate Edition, and Kinect Adventures! His QA work included projects like Jetpac Refuelled, Viva Piñata, Conker Live & Reloaded, Fable: The Lost Chapters, Perfect Dark Zero, Fable, Impossible Creatures, Tao Feng: Fist of the Lotus, Voodoo Vince, and just this 2014, Fable Anniversary.

In December of last year, a friend organized a Youcaring crowdfund for Forgey, revealing his diagnosis. Glioblastoma is a rare cancer that starts in the brain and acts highly aggressively. In Forgey’s case, his primary tumor could not be operated on. Forgey underwent several treatments, including chemotherapy, a bone marrow transplant, and a new treatment called an Optune cap.

Forgey kept on fighting until the end. The Youcaring organizer, Erika Evans Carlson, shared this update on the crowdfund page:

Mike passed away yesterday, March 3 at 3:15 am. His last few days were peaceful with his family by his side. Mike was so touched by everyone’s support during his fight. His family wants to thank everyone for their kind words and support during this difficult time.

Michael Forgey’s last project, Middle-Earth: Shadow of Mordor, was a critical and commercial success. GameRanx gave it a positive review upon release, and we took note of its innovative Nemesis system.