Electronic Arts has once again shared its stage during its media presentation prior to the Electronic Entertainment Expo tradeshow in Los Angeles with a smaller studio with a unique new game.
Hazelight, a new studio from the creators of Xbox 360 indie hit Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons, finally revealed A Way Out in a gameplay preview. It is a co-op game where you have to play splitscreen so you can see your partner at all times. Hazelight boss Josef Fares took the stage to show off his new game in action and to reveal what makes it special. A Way Out is due out in 2018.
In previous years, we’ve seen EA show off games like Unravel from its development partners, and now it has given that spot to Hazelight.
“Josef and his team at Hazelight represent everything that EA Originals stands for,” EA executive vice president Patrick Soderlund said in a statement. “They are a small and very talented group with a vision and passion for a game that is truly unique in the video game industry. A Way Out is going to surprise people with its innovative co-op gameplay and the way it tells an emotional story solely throughthese two characters.”
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EA and Hazelight first revealed they were working together way back at the end of 2014 during The Game Awards. The studio had a teaser trailer talking about the then-unnamed game and how EA was enabling Fares to pursue his vision.
In 2016, Hazelight reported that EA had given it $3.7 million to develop the game, but the studio confirmed that it has complete control over the development.
“This game is going to bring a co-op experience unlike anything you have ever seen before,” director and Hazelight founder Josef Fares said. “The idea for A Way Out came when me and a friend tried to find a story driven co-op game that wasn’t a drop-in/drop- out experience. We simply could not find a game like that. We’re also bringing an innovative look into how to tell the story of both these characters. Players will be immersed in the game with the way we change the display from a full screen experience seamlessly to different cinematic split-screen formats. By focusing on the two characters in different ways, it opens up a huge variety of gameplay, as we really wanted to avoid repetitions so they will get to know the characters through very different situations.”
