#493 – Jeff Kaplan: World of Warcraft, Overwatch, Blizzard, and Future of Gaming

with Jeff Kaplan

11 Mar 2026 21 min read 2h 15m

TL;DR

Jeff Kaplan's path from aspiring literary writer to legendary game designer reveals a counterintuitive truth: knowing when to quit one dream is essential to discovering your real calling. His philosophy on game design centers on three types of fun—for the player, the designer, and the computer—and he emphasizes focusing on 'what you want to do' rather than 'what you want to be,' especially when young.

Key Moments

Jeff Kaplan

“There's three types of fun, fun for the player, fun for the designer, and fun for the computer.”

Opening statement about the philosophy underlying good game design

Jeff Kaplan

“My whole career and my family are thanks to EverQuest, so I think I won the game.”

Reflecting on how EverQuest saved him from depression and gave his life direction after quitting writing

▶ 0:19

Jeff Kaplan

“I had believed I would never work any place but Blizzard. I loved it. It was a part of who I was, And I felt I was a part of it, and I literally thought I would retire from the place.”

Describing his deep emotional attachment to Blizzard before his departure in 2021

▶ 0:54

Lex Fridman

“How painful was it to say goodbye?”

Asking about leaving Blizzard after 20 years

▶ 1:11

Jeff Kaplan

“It broke me.”

One-word answer to the question about the pain of leaving Blizzard

▶ 1:14

About Jeff Kaplan

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Jeff Kaplan is a legendary game designer best known for leading the creation of World of Warcraft and Overwatch at Blizzard Entertainment, two of the most influential games ever made. Before becoming a designer, he was a world-class EverQuest player who spent over 6,000 hours in the game across three years. He left Blizzard in 2021 after 20 years and has been secretly working on The Legend of California, an open-world multiplayer game set in the 1800s Gold Rush era.

Takeaways

Three types of fun drive game design Kaplan's foundational principle separates player fun (engagement, progression), designer fun (creative expression, building systems), and computer fun (technical elegance, optimization). Balancing all three is what distinguishes great games from mediocre ones, and it mirrors the tension in any product: user experience, creator satisfaction, and technical feasibility must coexist.

Sometimes quitting is the only path forward After 170+ rejection letters in a year as an aspiring writer, Kaplan threw all his manuscripts in a dumpster and walked away. This wasn't failure—it was necessary psychological reset. For creators and entrepreneurs, knowing when a door needs to close (rather than pushing through indefinitely) is a crucial skill that society rarely teaches.

Focus on what you do, not what you are Rather than deciding 'I want to be a game designer' or 'I want to be a writer,' Kaplan advocates asking 'What brings me joy day-to-day?' His gaming became his calling when he stopped chasing the identity and started following the activity. This reframes career decisions from outcome-based pressure to intrinsic motivation.