PlayStation Studios head Hermen Hulst has revealed the company’s ambitions toward “experimentation” and finding games that will deliver something “fresh and exciting”.
In an interview with GI.biz, Hulst spoke about the recent news that PlayStation will be partnering with former Bungie veterans for a console exclusive.
“I see this as a strategic partnership that will allow us to continue evolving and exploring new territories for us,” he said of the news. “I believe that Firewalk’s ambitious vision for its original multiplayer game is going to deliver something really fresh and exciting.”
“I am very interested in creating a diverse slate of titles,” he continued. “Actually, the shape or form that they come in are less interesting to me than the fact that they are differentiated, diverse and distinctive.
“We tend to work with teams that do have something in common, which is that ambition that the Firewalk team has. But also the fact that [Firewalk] is a very strong, autonomous and, I would say, fiercely daring team… culturally, that’s a really good match. So I seek those factors before I go into narrowing it down to genres or gameplay modes. It is more about the experience being differentiated and unique.”
He also spoke about how Sony’s response to the coronavirus pandemic made PlayStation Studios a more accessible place to work. “One advantage of the work from home situation, for us at least, is that everybody is much more used to being dispersed around the globe.
“There’s a lot of people dialling in from home for playtests. So if you’re based in Europe, like myself, it’s kind of democratised now. The teams on the other side of the world are more accessible to me. So I can join a town hall, I can join a meeting, which is really great for me.”
Firewalk Studios, part of ProbablyMonsters, was founded in 2018 by industry veterans who have each worked on franchises such as Destiny, Call Of Duty, Apex Legends, Mass Effect, and Halo. Their new multiplayer game will be a PlayStation exclusive.
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