Todd Howard facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Todd Howard
Howard in 2010
Born	Todd Andrew Howard 1970 (age 54–55) Lower Macungie Township, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Alma mater	College of William & Mary (BBA)
Occupation	Video game designer, director, producer
Years active	1994–present
Employer	Bethesda Game Studios
Known for	The Elder Scrolls, Fallout
Spouse(s)	Kimberly Yaissle ​ (m. 1995)​
Children	2

Todd Andrew Howard (born in 1970) is an American video game designer, director, and producer. He works as a director and executive producer at Bethesda Game Studios. There, he has led the creation of the popular Fallout and The Elder Scrolls game series. He was also the game director for the space exploration game Starfield.

Early Life and Education

Todd Howard was born in 1970 in Lower Macungie Township, Pennsylvania. His parents are Ronald and Priscilla Howard. His older brother, Jeffrey Mark Howard, later became a director at Disney. Todd became interested in computers and video games at a very young age. He has said that the 1980s role-playing video games Wizardry and Ultima III: Exodus inspired his own games.

Howard went to Emmaus High School in Pennsylvania and graduated in 1989. He then studied business at the College of William & Mary in Virginia. He also took computer classes. He earned his degree in 1993. Howard later shared that studying business seemed like the easiest way to get through college.

During a college break, Howard got a game called Wayne Gretzky Hockey made by Bethesda Softworks. He visited Bethesda's offices and asked for a job. They told him he needed to finish school first. After graduating, he tried again but was still turned down. He then worked for a smaller game company. This allowed him to attend events where he kept asking Bethesda for a job.

Career in Game Development

Bethesda Softworks finally hired Todd Howard in 1994 as a producer. His first game credit was as a producer and designer for The Terminator: Future Shock in 1995. He also worked as a designer on Skynet and The Elder Scrolls II: Daggerfall, both released in 1996. He became a project leader for the first time on The Elder Scrolls Adventures: Redguard, which came out in 1998.

In 2000, Howard became the project leader and designer for The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind. This game was released in 2002. It was a huge success and won many Game of the Year awards. After that, he led the creation of The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion (2006) as its executive producer. He then directed and produced Fallout 3, released in 2008.

Howard returned to The Elder Scrolls series to lead the development of its fifth game, The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim. This game was released in November 2011. He then directed Fallout 4, which came out in November 2015. He also produced Fallout 76, a multiplayer game released in November 2018. Howard also worked as an executive producer for "Indiana Jones and the Great Circle".

Thoughts on Games and Awards

Howard in June 2018

In 2011, Howard said that The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion lost some of what made The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind special. He explained that they wanted Oblivion to feel more welcoming. But in doing so, they lost some of the "wonder of discovery" from Morrowind. He believes Bethesda's goal for The Elder Scrolls games is to let players "live another life, in another world."

Howard also supports modding in video games. Modding is when players create their own changes or additions to a game. He said he doesn't understand why many game developers don't allow it. After Fallout 4 was released, Howard knew about the criticisms, especially regarding the dialogue system. He admitted that the way they handled some dialogue in Fallout 4 "didn't work as well."

Howard (second from left) with Walton Goggins, Aaron Moten and Jonathan Nolan at South by Southwest 2024

Howard has spoken at many game industry events. In 2009 and 2012, he gave speeches at the D.I.C.E. Summit. He told developers to follow their passions when making games. He said that if only the number of players mattered, everyone would just make board games.

Howard's work has been featured in major news outlets like Newsweek and CNN. The popularity of his games has even turned him and some of his quotes into Internet memes.

Howard has received many awards for his work. He was the 16th person to get a Game Developers Conference Lifetime Achievement Award. GamePro magazine named him one of the "Top 20 Most Influential People in Gaming over the Last 20 Years." He also won the D.I.C.E. Award for "Outstanding Achievement in Game Direction" in 2012 and 2016. In 2017, he was added to the Hall of Fame of the Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences. In 2020, he received the Develop Star award for his great contributions to the game industry.

During an interview, Howard said he thinks Tetris is the greatest game ever made. He also mentioned that Ultima VII: The Black Gate is one of his favorite games. He said it greatly influenced the games he has developed.

Personal Life

Todd Howard married Kimberly Yaissle on July 8, 1995, in Pennsylvania. They have two sons.

Games Todd Howard Has Worked On

Todd Howard has worked on many games throughout his career. Here are some of the main ones:

• 1995: The Terminator: Future Shock (Producer, designer)
• 1996: Skynet (Producer, designer)
• 1996: The Elder Scrolls II: Daggerfall (Designer)
• 1998: The Elder Scrolls Adventures: Redguard (Project leader, designer, writer)
• 2002: The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind (Project leader, original idea)
• 2003: The Elder Scrolls III: Bloodmoon (Executive producer)
• 2004: The Elder Scrolls Travels: Shadowkey (Executive producer)
• 2006: The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion (Executive producer)
• 2007: The Elder Scrolls IV: Shivering Isles (Executive producer)
• 2008: Fallout 3 (Game director)
• 2011: The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim (Game director)
• 2012: The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim – Dawnguard (Game director)
• 2012: The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim – Hearthfire (Game director)
• 2012: The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim – Dragonborn (Game director)
• 2015: Fallout Shelter (Executive producer)
• 2015: Fallout 4 (Game director)
• 2018: Fallout 76 (Executive producer)
• 2019: The Elder Scrolls: Blades (Executive producer)
• 2023: Starfield (Game director)
• 2024: Indiana Jones and the Great Circle (Executive producer)
• To Be Announced: The Elder Scrolls VI (Game director)
• To Be Announced: Fallout 5 (Game director)

See also

In Spanish: Todd Howard para niños