Almost 25 years after co-founding development studio RARE, Tim and Chris Stamper have left the company to 'pursue new opportunities'.

In September 2002, the Stamper brothers sold their 51% share of RARE to Microsoft who purchased the studio for a record breaking $377 million. The pair have produced videogames such as Donkey Kong Country, Conker Live and Re-loaded and more recently Viva Piñata.

Microsoft commented briefly on the departure of the Stamper brothers by saying that, "Chris and Tim have helped shape Rare into the world-beating renowned development studio that it is today and their impact on the videogame industry as a whole is well known."

Stepping into the new roles are Mark Betteridge and Gregg Mayles, who've both been working at RARE since 1994 and have previously worked on the likes of Viva Piñata, Kameo Elements of Power and Perfect Dark Zero.

The only confirmed future Xbox 360 title in development by RARE is Banjo-Kazooie 3, although a third game in the Killer Instinct series is also rumoured to be in development.

Source: 1UP