Split Fiction Continues With More Surprises
First Players to Finish "Laser Hell" Challenge Earn a Trip to Hazelight Studios
Split Fiction has been making waves since its launch last month, and the excitement continues as players uncover the hidden "Laser Hell" stage. This challenging secret level has proven to be a tough nut to crack, but Chinese streamers sharkOvO and E1uM4y have risen to the occasion. Their triumph over the Laser Hell challenge, which involves navigating a laser-filled platform stage accessed via a specific sequence of switches in the Isolation level, was captured and shared on BiliBili.
Their success was met with a personal congratulatory video from Hazelight Founder Josef Fares, who revealed that even most of his team struggled with the level. Fares went a step further, extending an invitation to the duo to visit Hazelight Studios in Sweden. Following the video's release, Fares took to Twitter (X) on March 19 to reiterate his admiration and promise: "Congrats to 'sharkOvO' and 'E1uM4y' for finishing the secret challenge 'Laser Hell' in #splitfiction. VERY impressive! I will keep my promise and invite you both to Sweden for an early look at our next game. We'll be in touch!"
Hazelight Studios Working On Its Next Game
In a recent interview on the Friends Per Second podcast on March 17, Josef Fares discussed Hazelight's relationship with publisher EA and hinted at the studio's next project. Fares expressed a unique sense of completion with Split Fiction, describing it as the best-received game Hazelight has produced. However, his focus has already shifted to the future. "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.’ This has been a bit extra special... but I’m so fully-focused and excited on the next thing that we already have started," he shared.
While Fares kept details about the new game under wraps, citing its early stage, he assured fans of the studio's excitement and dedication. "There is a reason why I can’t talk about the next game; it’s because it’s quite early... We are very, very, very, very excited here. Very excited, and we started working on this a month ago-ish," he added.
Regarding Hazelight's partnership with EA, Fares was clear: "Here’s the thing, people don’t understand this: EA is a supporter. We don’t pitch games to them... They have zero, and I mean zero, thing to say about what we’re doing next." He emphasized EA's respect for Hazelight's creative autonomy, stating, "Maybe they’re messing up with other developers. With us, no. They respect us. They respect what we do... Now, we have become one of their most successful studios."
First Update and Hitting 2 Million Sales in 1 Week
On March 17, Split Fiction received its first update, addressing community feedback with fixes for in-game mechanics, online play glitches, and localization issues across all languages. This update underscores Hazelight's commitment to enhancing the player experience.
Additionally, Split Fiction has achieved a remarkable milestone, selling over 2 million copies within just one week of its release. This achievement surpasses the initial sales of Hazelight's previous title, It Takes Two, which sold 1 million copies a few weeks after its 2021 launch and eventually reached 20 million by October 2024.
Split Fiction is now available on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC. To stay updated with the latest news on the game, be sure to check out our article below!
