Summary
- Supermassive Games co-founders Pete and Joe Samuels are stepping down from the studio after more than 15 years.
- The studio gained major recognition with the release of "Until Dawn" and went on to create the "Dark Pictures Anthology" and "The Quarry."
- The Samuels brothers leave behind a lasting legacy as Supermassive Games continues to release highly anticipated games, including the upcoming "Little Nightmares 3" and "The Casting of Frank Stone."
Supermassive Games co-founders and brothers Pete and Joe Samuels have announced they are officially stepping down from the studio they started more than 15 years ago. Supermassive has become known amongst fans for its gripping interactive drama games, first gaining major notoriety with 2015's Until Dawn. The developer would go onto create the Dark Pictures Anthology franchise spanning several episodic releases, as well as 2022's The Quarry, which saw critical acclaim and received several award nominations.
Before the founding of Supermassive Games, Pete Samuels had spent time working with both EA and Sony subsidiary Psygnosis. Following Supermassive's forming, the studio originally worked as a second-party developer for Sony, creating on DLC for the first two LittleBigPlanet games and the PS3 remaster of Killzone. Supermassive would also later work with Bandai Namco on the Little Nightmares franchise, developing the Enhanced Edition of Little Nightmares 2 and assuming full development of Little Nightmares 3. Now, the studio's two co-founders are saying goodbye after more than a decade with Supermassive Games.
In an official announcement made to Supermassive Games' LinkedIn page, the company reveals that founders Pete and Joe Samuels will be leaving the company. The statement from Pete Samuels cites "health grounds" as the leading reason behind his decision to part with the company, expressing his admiration for the team at Supermassive. Samuels also reveals that Avalanche Studios chairman Robert Henrysson will take over as the new CEO of Supermassive Games, following the Samuels brothers' departure.
Supermassive Co-Founders Pete and Joe Samuels Leaving
The news regarding Supermassive Games' co-founders comes on the heels of a major announcement for one of the developer's biggest franchises. Earlier this month, Sony officially revealed a film adaptation of Until Dawn is in development earlier this month, with Shazam! Director David F. Sandberg and former G4 host Blair Butler writing the script. Many fans have also suggested that the Until Dawn movie could retain the game's original cast, featuring recognizable actors like Hayden Panettiere and Rami Malek. A release window for the film was not confirmed.
Pete and Joe Samuels will leave Supermassive Games as the studio has plenty of major releases on the way. Little Nightmares 3 is expected to launch at an unknown date during 2024, starring a pair of new protagonists venturing through The Nowhere. Supermassive is also scheduled to release The Casting of Frank Stone during 2024, a single-player narrative-driven spinoff of Dead by Daylight in collaboration with Behaviour Interactive. The Samuels brothers leave behind a lasting legacy from their time with Supermassive as the developer looks poised to reach even greater heights going forward.
Until Dawn
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OpenCritic Reviews
- Top Critic Avg: 79 /100 Critics Rec: 49%
- Released
- August 25, 2015
- ESRB
- M for Mature: Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, Sexual Themes, Strong Language
- Developer(s)
- Supermassive Games
- Publisher(s)
- Sony
- Engine
- Decima
WHERE TO PLAY
Only Your Choices Determine Who Survives
Eight friends are trapped together on a remote mountain retreat, and they aren’t alone. Gripped by dread, with tensions running high, they must fight through their fear if they all hope to make it through the night in one piece.
Play as each of the eight characters and experience fear like you never have before. Every decision you make in your terrifying search for answers could mean the difference between life and death, but for whom? Your actions alone will decide who survives Until Dawn.
Make the impossible choices, where every decision in your terrifying search for answers could mean the difference between life and death, but for who?
Carve your path to survival with branching story lines that promise no two experiences will be the same. The choices you make may ripple unseen into moments of grave peril, or they may very well save a life.
