Hazelight's director, Josef Fares, recently took the opportunity to clarify his studio's relationship with EA while also announcing that the team behind It Takes Two and Split Fiction is already diving into their next project. During an insightful interview on the Friends Per Second podcast, Fares, famously known for his candid "f\*\*\* the Oscars" comment, discussed the past, present, and future of Hazelight. Fans of the critically acclaimed co-op adventure, Split Fiction, will be pleased to know that early concepts for the next game are already in the works.
Fares shared his personal approach to game development, stating, "For me, personally, every time a game is out, I’m kind of done with it. I’m kind of like, ‘OK, here’s the next thing.’" He emphasized that while Split Fiction has been exceptionally well-received, his focus has swiftly shifted to the excitement of their upcoming project. Although he couldn't reveal much about the new title—due to the project being just a month old—Fares assured fans that Hazelight remains committed to their signature co-op gaming style.
"There is a reason why I can’t talk about the next game; it’s because it’s quite early," Fares explained. "You do know, at Hazelight, we don’t work on [a] game more than three or four years. Three or four years is not so far away. Then we’re going to talk more about it. It’s way too early, but just know this: we are very, very, very, very excited here. Very excited, and we started working on this a month ago-ish."
A Tale of Two Studios
Over the past seven years, Hazelight has collaborated with publisher EA on several successful titles, including A Way Out and It Takes Two. Fares clarified that EA's role is purely supportive, with no influence over the creative decisions at Hazelight. "Here’s the thing, people don’t understand this: EA is a supporter. We don’t pitch games to them," he said. "We say, ‘We’re going to do this.’ That’s it. They have zero, and I mean zero, thing to say about what we’re doing next."
Despite EA's mixed reputation in the industry, Fares praised their partnership, stating, "With that said, I have to say, they’re a good partner. Nobody believes me. Whatever I say, they’re like, ‘Yeah, yeah. It’s EA.’ Look, I don’t know anything about what EA are doing. Maybe they’re f\*\*\*ing up with other developers. With us, no. They respect us. They respect what we do. I’m very clear with them that they cannot interfere with what we do. Now, we have become one of their most successful studios."
Split Fiction has not only received high praise from critics, earning a 9/10 from IGN, but it has also achieved remarkable commercial success. The game sold 1 million copies within the first 48 hours and reached 2 million copies sold in just one week, surpassing the sales pace of its predecessor, It Takes Two, which had sold 20 million copies by October 2024.
