Summary
- Hazelight Studios may release a single-player game in the future.
- Despite being known for its co-op titles like It Takes Two and Split Fiction, the studio's director says that a single-player title isn't out of the question somewhere down the line.
Split Fiction director Josef Fares recently revealed that Hazelight Studio may develop a single-player game in the future, despite the studio’s history of creating popular split-screen co-op titles. While the possibility of a new single-player game developed by the Split Fiction studio does not seem likely in the immediate future, this means that fans can at least have some hope.
Founded by Fares in 2014, Hazelight Studios has released three co-op games: A Way Out, It Takes Two, and most recently, Split Fiction. Hitting shelves earlier this week, Split Fiction has received glowing reviews from critics, obtaining an incredible average critic score of 90 on OpenCritic. In Split Fiction, gamers play as Mio and Zoe, two authors trying to escape from a virtual world inspired by their stories by working together to overcome a series of challenges.
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Now, director Josef Fares has told Dexerto via Fall Damage that despite its initial focus on co-op games, there’s still the possibility of the studio releasing a single-player title in the future. Fares stated that Hazelight Studio will always have co-op as part of its DNA, but referred to Brothers - A Tale of Two Sons as one of his earlier projects that was actually single-player. “Single-player is not an impossibility for Hazelight, but it will be done in a Hazelight way,” Fares explained. Despite praising the genre, however, the creator of some of the best co-op games in recent years also took some time to dismiss claims that single-player titles are “dead,” clarifying that he never said that.
Split Fiction Director Won't Discard the Possibility of Single-Player Games in the Studio's Future
Single-player is not an impossibility for Hazelight, but it will be done in a Hazelight way.
While the possibility of a single-player game developed by Hazelight Studio may seem appealing to some people, it does not seem very likely at this point in time. Split Fiction was the first game published by EA to earn 90 or more on Metacritic in 13 years, following Mass Effect 3 in 2012. Following this impressive achievement, it’s likely that Hazelight Studios will continue to focus on its strengths.
Fares also revealed in a past interview that Hazelight Studio will never put microtransactions in its games. Microtransactions are one of the most contentious points of modern gaming, so many gamers will likely be glad to know that the developer does not plan to add this feature to more titles in the future. In the same interview, the director also addressed the recent acquisition boom in the gaming industry, revealing that there was some external interest in purchasing Hazelight. However, he had no interest in either selling the company or making it public.
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OpenCritic Reviews
- Top Critic Avg: 91 /100 Critics Rec: 98%
- Released
- March 6, 2025
- ESRB
- T For Teen // Blood and Gore, Crude Humor, Language, Violence
- Developer(s)
- Hazelight Studios
- Publisher(s)
- Electronic Arts
