With several critically acclaimed and commercially successful games under its belt, Hazelight Studios has solidified itself as one of the premier studios in the gaming industry for cooperative multiplayer experiences that put players first. What most people have issue with is that it has done so under the banner of Electronic Arts/EA, not exactly the poster boy for consumer-friendly practises. However, for founder Josef Fares, that perception is just plain wrong.
Having just released Split Fiction to huge success both critically and commercially, Fares was speaking in an interview with PC Gamer, and had some choice words.
“For some reason, people like to hate EA, I don’t know why. My relationship with them is very good. They’re super supportive of us. So I have nothing bad to say about them.
“Nobody believes me,”
Regarding the games Hazelight has developed, Fares assured fans that EA has never interfered. The studio has always been given the creative freedom to experiment and develop the type of games they envision, including Split Fiction. The publisher has also continued supporting the Friend’s Pass system, which now allows for cross-platform play.
“The problem with the whole capitalist idea is that you need to make more and more and more and more money,” Fares added. “Because when you have a great game—we’re seeing it with [Split Fiction], a game done only from passion, a game where you literally don’t have to buy two copies, a game that doesn’t have any microtransactions. And you see the success it does. I mean, it’s even a financial success, obviously, because people want to pay for something that feels great. So I just hope it inspires other publishers to do that.”
Perhaps the overt focus on the negative has coloured our perception, and when someone on the inside is sharing their views, it probably holds more weight. That is, until the next time EA does something that riles consumers.
Hazelight Studios and Fares’ focus has already shifted to a new project, which was revealed on the Friends Per Second podcast. Work began about a month ago, and if it’s anywhere near the quality of the studio’s other work, we are in for a treat.
Split Fiction is available on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC.
