Sony Interactive Entertainment have just confirmed some pretty big details on the next project its working on.
The news comes from the companies London Studio where they made a post on their website confirming that the studio now has two new co-heads. Tara Saunders and Stuart Whyte, the pair have been with the company since 2017. Their main goal as studio heads is to drive forward the London Studio with at last one in-development title that has “huge potential”.
“I want us to dream big and realise our full potential,” Saunders explained in response to a question about where they want the studio to be in five years. “But at the same time ensure that there is a real emphasis on ethical and sustainable game development practices. We have super strong values in place that mean we should be keeping in mind the importance of inclusivity, balance and team spirit on a day to day basis. Our next project has HUGE potential and we want to leverage that to the max by empowering the team to thrive and deliver a top quality game!”
So, we don’t exactly know just what this new project is just yet, but rumours are suggesting it will be an open-world crime game. Could this mean The Getaway is getting a new game?
The Getaway was first released on PlayStation 2 back in 2002, a 3D Grand Theft Auto Style game set in London. Despite the game having huge success, a sequel released later in 2004 was very poorly received, receiving as low as a 3/10 from some reviewers.
Fans of the franchise were excited last year as the studio posted a number of job listings on their website for a yet unannounced game, ideal candidates needed to have experience working on at least three AAA releases in the past.
Mike Rouse, a YouTuber who runs the channel Retro Gamer Boy and previously worked on The Getaway, commented that last year he heard something was brewing regarding the revival of the franchise. Mike had replied to a comment from a fan on a video of the trailer for the original game who asked for a remaster saying “I’ve heard from my contacts at Sony that something is in the works. What it is though I don’t know.”
2022 will be the 20th anniversary of the game, which would be the perfect opportunity to release a new entry into the franchise. Whyte also commented on how The Getaway is part of the London Studios “rich heritage”, a good sign for fans hoping for the revival of the game.
Again, this is mostly just speculation and rumours, we don’t know anything for certain as the studio haven’t made any official announcements. There’s a good chance that the studio are working on a number of projects right now, so we’ll have to wait and see what the studio have planned.
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