Portrait of Will Wright

Birthday profile

Will Wright

American video game designer and entrepreneur (born 1960)

Born
January 20, 1960
Age in 2026
66
Zodiac sign
Aquarius
Birth year
1960

About Will Wright

William Ralph Wright (born January 20, 1960) is an American video game designer and co-founder of the game development company Maxis, which later became part of Electronic Arts. In April 2009, he left EA to run Stupid Fun Club Camp, an entertainment think tank in which Wright and EA are principal shareholders. The first computer game Wright designed was Raid on Bungeling Bay in 1984, but it was SimCity that brought him to prominence. The game was published by Maxis, which Wright co-formed with Jeff Braun. Wright continued to innovate on the game's central theme of simulation with numerous other titles including SimEarth and SimAnt. Wright has earned many awards for his work in game design. He is best known for being the original designer of The Sims series, of which Maxis developed the first entry in 2000. The game spawned multiple sequels, including The Sims 2, The Sims 3, The Sims 4 and their expansion packs. His latest work, Spore, released in September 2008 and features gameplay based upon the model of evolution and scientific advancement. The game sold 406,000 copies within three weeks of its release. In 2007, he became the first game designer to receive the BAFTA Fellowship, which had previously only been presented to those in the film and television industries.

Biography source: Wikipedia. The profile adds birthday-specific historical context from the Celebs Birthday Today editorial database.

Will Wright timeline

  1. The first computer game Wright designed was Raid on Bungeling Bay in 1984, but it was SimCity that brought him to prominence.
  2. In 2007, he became the first game designer to receive the BAFTA Fellowship, which had previously only been presented to those in the film and television industries.
  3. In April 2009, he left EA to run Stupid Fun Club Camp, an entertainment think tank in which Wright and EA are principal shareholders.

The world when Will Wright was born

Will Wright was born in 1960. The year snapshot below places that birthday in its cultural and historical setting: the music and films people were following, the headlines shaping public life, and the everyday prices families encountered.

Culture in 1960

  • #1 song"The Twist" – Chubby Checker
  • Top movieThe Apartment
  • Top TV showGunsmoke
  • Best-selling bookTo Kill a Mockingbird – Harper Lee

Headlines and milestones

  • Major sports momentCassius Clay (Muhammad Ali) wins Olympic gold in boxing
  • Top headlineJFK elected as youngest US president
  • Technology milestoneFirst working laser demonstrated
  • Defining fadThe Twist dance craze
  • Notable inventionLaser
  • World population3.03 billion

United States snapshot

  • U.S. leaderDwight D. Eisenhower
  • Sports championPittsburgh Pirates (World Series)
  • Also wonBoston Celtics (NBA)
  • U.S. population180.7M

1960 versus 2026

These figures put everyday life in Will Wright's birth year beside the site's latest United States snapshot.

Measure19602026
Gas$0.31$3.45/gal
Average home$12,700$435,000
Average income$7,400$67,500
Minimum wage$1.00$7.25/hr (federal)
Movie ticket$0.69$11.95
Postage stamp$0.04$0.73
Population180.7M341 million

Sources and editorial standards

This profile combines a biographical source with structured birthday and historical context. Sources recorded for this profile: Wikipedia, Encyclopaedia Britannica, Library of Congress. See our editorial policy for sourcing, corrections, and review standards.

Read the source biography on Wikipedia. Wikipedia text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.