Hazelight Studios, the independent game developer based in Stockholm, Sweden, turns 10 this year. As part of the celebration for the upcoming tenth anniversary, the official Twitter account teased that they have ‘new (real good) stuff cooking’ that will be discussed later this year.
This seems a rather obvious hint at their next game being revealed in 2024, possibly at the Summer showcases (Summer Game Fest or Gamescom) or maybe at The Game Awards in December. Either way, the many fans of Hazelight will undoubtedly be excited by the prospect.
The studio founded by Josef Fares has released two games so far, both of which were well received. The first, A Way Out, launched in 2018 and got a 9 out of 10 score in Wccftech’s review:
A Way Out is an impressive achievement that definitively proves creativity matters more than bloated budgets and big-name franchises. A technically accomplished, endlessly inventive co-op masterpiece, A Way Out will surprise and excite you from beginning to end. This one deserves to be a breakout hit.
Their second game, 2021’s It Takes Two, was even more successful, receiving the Game of the Year prize at The Game Awards 2021 and selling over 16 million units as of last month. However, our Nathan Birch didn’t quite love it as much as Hazelight’s debut title, rating it 8 out of 10.
It Takes Two is one of the most varied, inventive games ever made, serving up dozens upon dozens of different styles of gameplay in a remarkably polished, approachable package. An inconsistent level of challenge and lack of editing may strain your relationship with the game at times, but It Takes Two is good enough to justify working through the rough patches.
If the two games already released by Hazelight aren’t enough to satisfy your thirst for Josef Fares’ peculiar game design, his first game (2014’s Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons, originally made under Starbreeze) was recently remade by 505 Games.
