In an unexpected announcement early on Friday, Erik Yeo, known best as the lead designer for Command & Conquer, and Lewis Peterson, Westwood Studios producer, have left Westwood Studios to form a new game-development company.

　　The new company, 7 Studios, based in Santa Monica, Calif., will focus its energies on building games for both PC and console platforms.

　　"This is a chance of a lifetime," said Yeo. "I'm extremely excited about working with Lewis and the team, and the opportunity to build new franchises in a new environment. It is difficult to leave, but I'm happy to say that Tiberian Sun is looking great and is in very good hands. I will look back at my time at Westwood with fond memories."

　　Yeo will be 7 Studios' design director, and Peterson will become the company's managing director. At Westwood, Peterson oversaw the Command & Conquer product lineup, the Dune series, and other Westwood titles.

　　"Erik is a rare industry talent and the greatest designer I've had the pleasure of working with," said Peterson. "At 7 Studios, we are assembling a veteran team that knows how to create hit games, how to create hit franchises, and how to work together. We're going to make some great games."

　　GameSpot News spoke briefly with Peterson this morning, and he said more information about 7 Studios would be available at a later date.

　　We spoke to Westwood Studios' Aaron Cohen who said, "We'll miss Erik, but T-Sun is in great shape. The team is intact, upbeat, and excited about finishing the year's most anticipated game. Brett (Sperry) is deeply involved in every detail of the game, and we're going to finish up this summer as planned. Keep in mind, Brett was the original creator of the series and he continues to be involved in almost every detail, as always on every C&C game."