PlayStation makes its third acquisition of the summer by buying Firesprite, based in the UK.
The Liverpool-based game developer may not be a well-known name – he’s best known for working with PSVR, for the horror shooter The Persistence, and for supporting Sony titles The Playroom, but it’s a major studio with more of 250 employees. To put it in context, it’s bigger than the other two big British PlayStation teams: London Studio and Media Molecule.
But what also makes this remarkable is that Firesprite was formed by employees of Sony’s famous Sony studio, the developer who was with PlayStation from the beginning and created the Wipeout franchise, before it closed in 2012. to us, fans of old-school British industry, it feels like a significant moment.
“It feels great, Chris,” agrees Hermen Hulst, head of PlayStation Studios. “Working with people ranging from Wipeout … the whole leadership team we’ve worked with in the past. Graeme Ankers, Stuart Tilley, Dr. Lovegrove … I’ve worked directly with them on projects, at Killzone 2. That legacy of the old Liverpool Formula 1 Studio … it’s a fantastic feeling to welcome them back into the family.
“That legacy of the old Liverpool Studio … it’s a great feeling to welcome them back into the family”
Hermen Hulst, Sony
“But what I really like is that Firesprite has grown a lot. It’s now a major developer of over 250 people. They’ve really established an entrepreneurial spirit as an independent team. They’re very experimental in their approach to game development. I think that the combination of this legacy and this entrepreneurial spirit … is an excellent basis for collaborating on the few great exclusive gaming projects we are working on together. ”
Firesprite managing director Graeme Ankers continues: “It’s almost historic, Chris. That’s how I see it. I always think the North West is the cradle of the UK gaming industry. I bored people with this story, but in Reality is built on this region and this legacy of innovation and all the things we have done over the decades.You can trace the origins of Firesprite to that golden age of gaming.
“Everything through us [PlayStation and Firesprite] they have had an intertwined history. Personally with Hermen, and the founding members and seniors from across the studio we can trace their roots back to those days. And everything is forged in this innovation and brings something new to everything we touch. That’s what we do. “
Firesprite is the third acquisition PlayStation has made in so many months
Firesprite has collaborated with PlayStation Studios before, working with Team Asobi on The Playroom titles for PS4. However, Hulst says the developer will work on his own projects in the future.
“It’s the right time for them to join us and double the projects we’re doing with them. To consolidate the relationship and give them a proper place at the table where we have a formal knowledge exchange with other studies. They already have some strengths links to certain top-tier studios, but I want to be clear that we want them to lead the development of various game projects, rather than helping other teams, even though they have already collaborated with us.
“As Firesprite has grown and evolved, we believe this is a role that is already ready, developing games exclusively for PlayStation Studios.”
Prior to the acquisition, Firesprite had been recruiting for two titles: a “huge, game-changing multiplayer shooter and an ambitious dark narrative blockbuster adventure.” Ankers and Hulst couldn’t talk about the productions the company is working on, other than that they’ll be in genres outside of PlayStation Studios ’core offerings.
“I encourage a strong and diverse list of games coming out of PlayStation Studios,” Hulst says.
“Ideally [the games] they are aligned with the culture and what the teams are good at. It is certainly true that Firesprite is a team that likes to play with a platform. They love to experiment, take something and play with it.
The head of PlayStation Studios, Hermen Hulst
“In a sense that is perhaps a bit similar to the Asobi team, not to suggest that they will make similar games, but in their own way. They are a flexible team, as you can give them any platform and they love this challenge.
“PlayStation Studios teams are culturally very diverse. There’s an overlap, there’s always this commitment to quality, there’s always this collaboration … but the experiences you can expect [from Firesprite] it will be very different from the computers you know at PlayStation Studios. And I like that. I think our audience, our community, deserves very rich and very different experiences. After all, that’s what makes us stronger. “
Ankers adds: “I would love to be able to talk about it [our games] sometime soon. They will be beautiful and amazing universes that players will enjoy for years to come, but we can’t talk specifically about what they are or what genre they are.
“Everything we do has a different facet, whether it’s an innovation that will hopefully change a genre and hopefully you can see it in our previous versions. We’ll always have that philosophy and we’ll have that desire to bring some something new to the genre, and maximizing the experience whatever it is … whether on a technology platform or not. It’s about creating the best experience possible. “
Ankers ’reference to technology speaks to Firesprite’s story of“ using Hulst’s word ”with“ hardware ”with hardware. The recent release of The Persistence Enhanced saw the developer use Sony’s DualSense driver, while the firm has worked on consoles, PCs, mobiles and VR during its relatively short eight-year history.
In fact, given its multiple versions of VR, the company seems ideal for working on titles for the new PlayStation VR headsets. And when I first heard the news, I immediately assumed that was the thought behind the acquisition.
“We have a drive to create something culturally meaningful that touches millions of people”
Graeme Ankers, Firesprite
“Not necessarily,” Hulst says. “It’s clear that the experience that Firesprite has gained in their work with The Persistence and The Playroom is something they bring to the table. It’s too early to talk about what specific platforms or experiences we will be collaborating with Firesprite. experience is very valuable.
Ankers again: “The philosophy we have is to really innovate and create on any platform. Whether VR or not. VR is amazing. It really changes the design paradigm and immerses you in these worlds. It really doesn’t. It matters to us. what is the hardware, we will maximize, create and innovate for that particular hardware.
“We have experience in many RV projects and many other non-RV projects throughout our history. It’s about being brave and creating experiences that really show what any platform feature can offer and the best gaming experience. . , of couse.”
Ankers says the innovation Firesprite hopes to offer isn’t necessarily tied to hardware functionality, it’s about doing new things within the genres. Highlights include some of the ideas found in The Persistence, such as the red-like elements of the game or the ability to involve additional players in the single-player experience using smartphones and tablets.
“We’re ambitious and enterprising,” Ankers tells us. “We set out to be a world – leading team right here in the UK. There is an effort to create something culturally meaningful that touches millions of people and tells a story that really has our origins.
“Our values in our studio are based on inclusion, entrepreneurship, courage, professionalism … all of this is shared with Hermen and the team. And that’s why it feels so good and good. You have to have shared values We need to share the same vision Intertwined history is a big part of this We know how we both work, we know how we both think, even in the future We think it’s a great time to join the group and I hope we continue to do what we are doing and bring these new innovations to drive it. They are shared visions and values. That’s why PlayStation is a perfect thing for us in the future. “
The Persistence Enhanced is the latest version of Firesprite
Despite decades of legacy and friendship, Hulst wanted to remind us that Firesprite is still a relatively young studio. And that part of the excitement surrounding the acquisition is the ability to power this team to become one of the leading PlayStation studios, sitting next to Naughty Dog, Santa Monica and Guerrilla Games.
“I don’t think we’re climbing to grow up. I want to be very selective.”
Hermen Hulst, Sony
“The team grows, improves and matures very quickly,” Hulst says. “The level of ambition of the projects we’ve started, I think it really benefits if we work together very closely and promote Firesprite in one of the great costumes at PlayStation Studios. It’s a good time for us, now that we know exactly what we’re doing together, and now that Graeme has found great talent, to really take advantage of a lot of learning from other teams, to share knowledge about game development, storytelling, and all those elements that are close to our hearts.
“The idea of promoting a new studio for an amazing PlayStation Studio is really exciting for me.
We mentioned at the head of the article that this is the third studio to join the PlayStation family this summer, following the acquisitions of Housemarque and Nixxes. It’s a competitive time, with headlines about studio purchases being made almost daily. Sony is not immune to what is happening in the market, but its acquisition strategy is targeted, and the three recent investments are with developers to whom it was already closely connected. “PlayStation Studios is definitely growing, but we’re also very selective in the type of computers we talk to,” Hulst concludes. “The teams we care about share our values. Those who like to innovate, they like to become world-class creators.
“I don’t think we’re climbing to grow up. I want to be very selective. Our growth is measured in that sense. It’s based on quality and it’s based on shared values and good relationships.
“On the one hand, Graeme’s team is a well-known quality. I personally know the team of senior leaders. On the other hand, he has been able, with the strong culture of the studio, to attract such phenomenal talent. of people I don’t know personally, but I’m very excited to work and collaborate on these new and ambitious projects that we started some time ago.
“It’s the organic growth of people where together we can become better creators. That’s really exciting: fostering projects, talent and studies at the level we all aspire to.”