Veteran game designer Warren Spector, who has worked on iconic game like Ultima Underworld and Deus Ex, has announced that he is joining Otherside Entertainment, the studio behind Underworld Ascendant and the recently announced System Shock 3.

For the last few years, Spector has been working at the University of Texas at Austin, helping the school develop a post-baccalaureate game design program. However, Spector has said that he is stepping back from that role to join Otherside Entertainment.

“I’ve loved working with students as Director of the Denius-Sams Gaming Academy in the University of Texas’ Moody College of Communication,” Spector said (via GamesIndustry.biz). “But when the opportunity to have a bigger role in bringing Underworld Ascendant to life, as well as playing in the System Shock universe once again, helping to bring these games to a 21st century audience, I just couldn’t say no.”

“Working on System Shock was one of the most fulfilling things I’ve done in my career and it’s hard to describe how much I’m looking forward to sharing with players what SHODAN has been up to since the last game was released.”

While System Shock and System Shock 2 may not be household names to the average gamer under 30, they are two of the most influential games of all time, having established a number of tropes that have become standard in most modern first-person shooters and role-playing games. They also served as the direct inspiration for the BioShock series, which was created by System Shock 2 director Ken Levine.

Otherside Entertainment teased in December that a true sequel to the System Shock series was coming, and the announcement of the addition of Warren Spector, who worked with Otherside founder Paul Neurath on the original game, has System Shock fans more excited than ever.

Image courtesy of Looking Glass Studios via Steam Store