Microsoft-owned Activision has announced a brand-new studio nine days after Microsoft shut down several of its Bethesda studios including Arkane Austin and Tango Gameworks.
In a new blog post, Activision revealed Elsewhere Entertainment, a new standalone internal studio working "exclusively" on a new "narrative-based IP and genre-defining AAA franchise." Elsewhere will have "full access to Activision's resources and tools as it continues to increase production and development."
The Warsaw, Poland-based studio is made up of "storytelling experts" who previously worked on big-name releases including The Last of Us, Uncharted, The Witcher, Cyberpunk, Destiny, The Division, and Far Cry.
- Rescued The Evil Within and Hi-Fi Rush studio confirms it's making "games that only Tango Gameworks can make" after Krafton saved it from the Microsoft graveyard
- "Project Hadar needs an extraordinary crew" says Cyberpunk 2077 and The Witcher 3 studio, sharing lots of job openings for the studio's first original game
"Built from the ground up, Elsewhere Entertainment is a premier and standalone studio dedicated to establishing an environment that inspires bold and diverse ideas," reads the announcement. "The team's underlying mission encourages everyone to explore and collaborate creatively to craft a franchise with an enduring legacy that resonates far beyond games."
Announcing a new studio so soon after closing several sure is a choice, but it's worth noting that Activision itself likely had little to do with the closures at Bethesda, even though they're all owned by the same mega corporation. In reality, the wording in the announcement makes it sound like Elsewhere has been working on its new IP for some time now, likely well before Microsoft's decision to close anything. Basically, it just seems like unfortunate timing.
Elsewhere says it's working on bulking up its staff to "create a state-of-the-art and next generation gaming experience," but there's no word just yet on when we'll get the full reveal.
In the meantime, here are the best Xbox Series X games you can play today.
The Witcher 3 dev says his new vampire RPG Blood of Dawnwalker wants to challenge genre conventions, but only if "we're changing them to actually achieve some goal"
PUBG creator's wilderness survival game actually draws inspiration from an unexpected place - a whole raft of zombie games like DayZ, Project Zomboid, and Left 4 Dead
