Hazelight Praises EA as 'Good Partner' Amid Next Game Development

Hazelight director Josef Fares has recently provided clarity on his studio's relationship with EA and teased the development of their next game following the success of It Takes Two and Split Fiction. In an engaging interview on the Friends Per Second podcast, Fares, known for his candid remarks including the infamous "f*** the Oscars" comment, discussed Hazelight's journey and what lies ahead.

For fans of Split Fiction, Hazelight's latest critically acclaimed co-op adventure, Fares shared that the team is already brainstorming early concepts for their next project. "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,'" Fares said, reflecting on his mindset post-Split Fiction release. He highlighted the game's exceptional reception as the best they've achieved yet, but his focus is already shifting to the excitement of their upcoming endeavor.

While Fares kept details about Hazelight's next title under wraps—mentioning that work began just a month ago—he hinted at the studio's reputation for innovative co-op gaming. Fans will need to wait a few years to learn more about how Hazelight plans to follow up on Split Fiction. "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 multiple projects. Titles like A Way Out and It Takes Two have cemented Hazelight's reputation as a leading developer. Fares emphasized that EA has had "zero" influence over the games Hazelight chooses to create. "Here’s the thing, people don’t understand this: EA is a supporter. We don’t pitch games to them," he clarified. "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 varied reputation in the industry, Fares praised their partnership. "With that said, I have to say, they’re a good partner," he noted. "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 reinforced Hazelight's success but has done so remarkably. It garnered high praise from critics, achieving a 9/10 in IGN's review, and sold 1 million copies within 48 hours and 2 million copies in just one week. This rapid sales performance outpaces their previous hit, It Takes Two, which had sold 20 million copies by October 2024.