It appears that a new era atNeed For Speed UnbounddeveloperCriterionis about to begin, with five long-serving developers leaving the studio to “explore new options outside EA”, including the studio’s Vice President and General Manager. As reported byGameIndustryBiz, all five veteran devs intend to evaluate new offers from outside EA.
Electronic Arts' internal studio Criterion is losing five of its long-time developers following the launch of Need For Speed Unbound last month. Now-ex VP and GM of the UK-based studio, Matt Webster, has left Criterion after serving for over 23 years. Matt had worked for Electronic Arts since 1990, and he was also a part of the development of the first FIFA game. Senior Executive Producer Pete Lake and Technical Director Andrei Shires are also departing Criterion after nearly two decades. Other staff members leaving the studio also include Alan McDairmant, head of studio development who joined EA 17 years ago, and Steve Uphill, who served as head of content during his 10-year tenure at Criterion.
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After the departure of these developers, Geoff Smith, who was a part of the development team behind theDirtandGRIDseries, is moving from Codemasters to take the role of senior director of product development for Need For Speed. Charity Joy, who served as a franchise developer at EA Sports in the past year, joins Criterion as executive producer for the Need For Speed series. Steve Cuss, on the other hand, will remain in the same position as head of studio operations to report directly to David Rutter, General Manager of EA’s racing group.
“It’s now been one year since the talented teams at Codemasters and Criterion officially came together as one unified force, driving the future of racing entertainment.” reads a staff-wide email sent by David Rutter. “As we look ahead, we know there’s a strong opportunity to evolve our games and experiences, and bring them to an even broader audience of fans – with our long-term strategy centered on our strengths in licensed motorsports as well as arcade/open-world racing.”
Several key members of Criterion left the company following Unbound’s release, which may imply that the game isn’t selling as well as it had planned. Given that Need For Speed Unbound is currently offered at a 40% discount on the Xbox Store two weeks after its initial release, it could be struggling as a result of EA’s subdued launch.
