Raven Software began in a small studio with a partnership that helped shape the industry, contributing to influential titles like Hexen, Heretic, the Star Wars Jedi Knight series, X-Men Legends, and Wolfenstein, and later lending its expertise to Call of Duty and Warzone.

For three decades, Raffel has been a central leader at Raven, guiding a broad portfolio that includes 18 Call of Duty games and other early titles.

Raffel and his team played a pivotal role in Raven’s evolution and ongoing contributions to major franchises.

Among the studio’s catalog, Singularity (2010) stands out as a personal favorite, noted for its time-travel mechanics and solid gunplay despite being underrated.

The piece also points readers to Insider Gaming content, including coverage like the Xbox FanFest Tour for 2026 and a weekly newsletter.

Readers are invited to share their favorite Raven game, with author bio details and social links provided.

Current Raven news includes plans to expand gameplay options in Call of Duty: Black Ops Royale and the introduction of a new GRWM playlist in Black Ops 7, with engagement invited via comments and Discord.

Raven’s last original IP was Singularity, a sci‑fi horror shooter whose development faced challenges and which some players felt lacked standout features at launch.

Today Raven employs over 300 developers, and co-studio head David Pellas will continue as the studio’s lone head after Raffel retires.

David Pellas, who has co-led Raven for the past 12 years, will lead the studio alone going forward.

Steve Raffel stepped down in 2017, leaving Brian as the remaining Raffel at the studio, which now numbers more than 300 developers.

Background from Ryan McCaffrey and IGN outlines Raffel’s journey from teacher and track coach to game developer, with a long-form interview linked for deeper insight.