Fallout 4, Skyrim Director Getting Lifetime Achievement Award

Todd Howard, the director of critically acclaimed and best-selling games like Fallout 4 and The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, will be honored with a lifetime achievement award next month. Howard, a longtime employee of Bethesda who knocked on the developer's door with his resume as a college student in hopes of getting a job, will receive the award at next month's Game Developers Choice Awards. He is being honored specifically for his "innovative contributions to open-world gameplay and game development."

Howard, 44, has been with Bethesda for 22 years and is described by GDC GM Meggan Scavio as a "visionary developer" who helped push the industry forward with 3D open worlds specifically.

"The Elder Scrolls and Fallout series present gamers with fully realized worlds filled with vast landscapes, and mystery at every corner. We're proud to honor the visionary developer for his leadership in creating these universes," Scavio said. "When you're completely captivated by these detailed worlds, it's easy to forget the level of dedicated work and creativity that went into every square inch. This award reflects on the amazing craft of Todd Howard and his team in making worlds as real as anything on Earth."

Other GDC Lifetime Achievement Award recipients include BioWare founders Ray Muzyka and Greg Zeschuk, Fable designer Peter Molyneux, and Final Fantasy creator Hironobu Sakaguchi, among others.

Howard will receive the Lifetime Achievement Award during the Game Developers Choice Awards on March 16 at a ceremony in San Francisco. His latest game, Fallout 4, is nominated for overall Game of the Year at the event, while mobile game Fallout Shelter is up for Best Handheld/Mobile Game.

As for what Howard might work on next after getting Fallout 4's DLC out the door, he said in an interview in December that he has "lots of ideas" for future games. Bethesda will hold its second-ever E3 briefing this June in Los Angeles, though it's unknown if Howard will be making any announcements there.