Glen Schofield, founding father of Placing Distance Studios and director of its first sport, The Callisto Protocol, has introduced he’s departing the corporate. Schofield is maybe greatest often called the co-creator of the Useless Area franchise and the co-founder of Name of Obligation developer Sledgehammer Video games. Steve Papoutsis, who beforehand served as chief improvement officer and common supervisor for Placing Distance Studios, has been appointed as the brand new CEO.
Schofield has been lively within the video games business because the early Nineties, working at corporations like THQ, Crystal Dynamics, and Eidos Interactive. In 2008, Schofield turned recognized for his co-creation of the Useless Area franchise, which many level to as the most effective sci-fi-horror video games of the last decade. Shortly after Useless Area’s success, Schofield left Digital Arts and Visceral Video games to co-found Sledgehammer Video games, which labored on Name of Obligation: Fashionable Warfare 3, Name of Obligation: Superior Warfare, and Name of Obligation: WWII below his supervision. In 2019, following a break from lively improvement, Schofield based Placing Distance Studios and started work on the sport that might turn into The Callisto Protocol. Schofield acted as director on that sport, which served as a religious successor to the unique Useless Area.
Placing Distance Studios founder Glen Schofield
Sadly, upon launch, The Callisto Protocol fell wanting expectations, incomes a 69 out of 100 on evaluate combination website Metacritic (together with a 6 out of 10 from Recreation Informer) and falling a number of million copies shy of writer Krafton’s gross sales projections. In the identical timeframe as The Callisto Protocol’s launch, Digital Arts and Motive Studio launched a remake of the unique Useless Area to crucial acclaim. Final month, Placing Distance Studios suffered layoffs, letting go of 32 staff.
Newly appointed CEO Steve Papoutsis additionally comes from the Useless Area collection, having labored on all three authentic entries whereas at EA and Visceral Video games, together with taking a management position with the franchise following Schofield’s departure. Within the wake of as we speak’s information, Papoutsis once more slots into a task as soon as stuffed by Schofield.
Newly appointed Placing Distance CEO Steve Papoutsis
“Creating Placing Distance Studios has been an unbelievable journey and I am so pleased with what we have achieved with The Callisto Protocol, a sport near my coronary heart,” Schofield stated in a press launch. “Whereas pursuing a brand new journey is thrilling, leaving SDS is bittersweet, however I do know the studio is in wonderful fingers. Steve and I am going means again to working at Visceral Video games. I noticed how profitable he was in taking the reins after my departure then and the way he continued the studio’s success and progress. That is how I do know he is the one to steer the studio into its subsequent chapter.”
There’s presently no phrase on what Schofield will do following his departure from Placing Distance Studios, however the official wording is that he “has determined to pursue new alternatives.” For extra on the creation of Placing Distance Studios and The Callisto Protocol, head right here to learn our in-depth cowl story on the sport.