God of War was one of the franchises that Kelly Flock greenlit.

Former Sony Online Entertainment chief Kelly Flock passes away

Former Sony Online Entertainment president Lewis “Kelly” Flock, a game industry leader who backed classic hits such as the original God of War and Twisted Metal: Black, has died.

His passing was not unexpected among friends, as he had been ill, but his death sent reverberations through a game development community that has been hit hard in recent months, especially during the pandemic. As the news spread on social media, it was evident how much impact Flock had on a generation of game developers who have now become leaders themselves.

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Dean Takahashi

Dean Takahashi is editorial director for GamesBeat. He has been a tech journalist since 1988, and he has covered games as a beat since 1996. He was lead writer for GamesBeat at VentureBeat from 2008 to April 2025. Prior to that, he wrote for the San Jose Mercury News, the Red Herring, the Wall Street Journal, the Los Angeles Times, and the Dallas Times-Herald. He is the author of two books, "Opening the Xbox" and "The Xbox 360 Uncloaked." He organizes the annual GamesBeat Next, GamesBeat Summit and GamesBeat Insider Series: Hollywood and Games conferences and is a frequent speaker at gaming and tech events. He lives in the San Francisco Bay Area.