Rob Boyle

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Rob Boyle is a game designer who mainly works on role-playing games. While FASA was closing, he was an editor there and chose not to move to WizKids, because WizKids wasn’t going to keep FASA’s RPG lines. He wanted the Shadowrun license, and Fantasy Productions showed interest. Werner Fuchs invited him to Germany, where Boyle helped start FanPro LLC with Fantasy Productions partners to hold the FASA game line in the U.S.

FanPro licensed Shadowrun in 2001 with Boyle as Line Editor, and they quickly moved Shadowrun back into development, with Boyle guiding the metaplot. He also tried a new approach with downloadable Shadowrun Missions adventures, the first season overseen by Rich Osterhout. Around 2003, he began work on a simpler Shadowrun edition, which became Shadowrun Fourth Edition (2005).

In 2007, Boyle and Randall N. Bills tried to buy FanPro, but the deal fell through. They threatened to leave and bid for WizKids licenses, and WizKids mediated. The licenses were granted to InMediaRes, which hired Boyle and Bills as regular staff. Boyle stayed as Shadowrun Line Editor for a few more years, while Bills became a Managing Director of InMediaRes.

Boyle then helped form Posthuman Studios with Brian Cross and Adam Jury, and they produced Eclipse Phase (2009), Catalyst Game Labs’ fourth RPG. He had the idea for Eclipse Phase since FanPro, and after its publication he stepped away from Shadowrun development. He couldn’t release Eclipse Phase supplements before leaving Catalyst due to problems at the company.