The immersive sim genre is one of the more underrepresented in the industry, owing to its complex and multi-layered nature alongside the fact that past successes have failed to hit the heights which shareholders demand. One team which was dedicated to the genre however was Arkane. In the wake of the closure of its Austin branch, a new studio has risen, with veterans Harvey Smith and Ricardo Bare announcing ‘Black Pony Immersive’.

In an interview with the publication TheGameBusiness, ex-Arkane co-studio head and immersive sim icon Harvey Smith announced that he has opened up a brand new studio alongside Ricardo Bare.

Named Black Pony Immersive, it is quite clear what the newly established studio will be focused on, with the team stating: “We want to make immersive sims. We want to make single player, narrative driven, first person games where you explore and solve problems creatively. Think Deus Ex, think Dishonored, that's what we're doing.”

While things remain in its early stages for now (having officially formed just a year ago and currently comprising of 26 developers), Black Pony Immersive includes plenty of talent.

For the uninitiated, not only is Harvey Smith known for his extensive work on the Dishonored series, but the creative has had a hand in many of the biggest games in the immersive sim genre going as far back as the original 1994 System Shock. Smith was also the lead game designer for the 2000 classic Deus Ex and even served as a game designer for 2004’s Thief Deadly Shadows.

The full interview with Smith and co. can be found HERE, and includes their thoughts on the immersive sim genre, the current state of the industry and much more.

KitGuru says: What do you think of this announcement? Is the immersive sim genre saved? What’s your favourite series worked on by Harvey Smith? Let us know down below.

Warren Spector, the veteran game designer best known for creating Deus Ex, has announced his retirement following more than four decades in the games industry. Spector shared the news on LinkedIn, describing a decision that comes after flirting with retirement and choosing to stay in the industry longer: The reasons for my retirement are straightforward: I'm nearing 44 years as a developer. Throughout my career, I've had the privilege of working on tabletop role-playing games and board games, and I've contributed to a multitude of digital games—17 complete titles, if I recall correctly, along with about nine expansion packs. A […]

Read full article at https://wccftech.com/warren-spector-retires-44-years-immersive-sim-godfather/

Warren Spector, the man behind Deus Ex, says he’s done with game development. Or at least he thinks he is.

In a LinkedIn post, Spector said he’s a month away from his 44th year as a developer and it’s simply time to stop. He’s worked on 17 full games and around 9 add-on packs across a career that’s seen him lead teams as small as a dozen people and as large as 800. His reasoning isn’t dramatic. He just doesn’t find the games business as fun as he used to.

Why is Warren Spector stepping away

Warren Spector pointed to age and health catching up with him, alongside a games industry that’s changed shape under his feet. He’s planning to write books, read more, maybe lecture or consult, and finally get back to playing piano. Still, he admits there are three games he’d love to make, one big, one small, and one he says scares him because he doesn’t know how to build it.

He also had a message for the next generation of developers: your job is to make people forget people like me ever existed. Fair play, that’s a proper mic drop line to retire on.

Will he actually stay retired? He’s not ruling out a comeback, and honestly, with three unfinished ideas still nagging at him, don’t be shocked if funding and a team pull him back in eventually.

Want more updates like this? Click right here!

One of the most disappointing things about Embracer's acquisition of Eidos Montreal has been the complete lack of interest in bringing back Deus Ex. Now after years of struggling to generate hit games, Embracer Group finally appears to be willing to give Deus Ex a chance at life. 

Today, alongside an announcement of new organisational changes, Embracer Group said that it will be “more actively exploring external partnerships” for dormant AAA IP like Deus Ex, Thief, TimeSplitters, Red Faction, Saints Row, Legacy of Kain and even The Mask – I must admit, I didn't even know Embracer owned that last one.

While this means that Embracer Group itself won't be putting its own studios onto projects involving these IP, third-parties can come in and pitch. Personally, I would like to see a scenario where former Arkane (Prey) developers band together to grab the license.

Embracer has also made some other positive moves this week by putting the studio behind Kingdom Come Deliverance on a new Lord of the Rings game, which is perhaps the best use of their resources that I've observed in years.

Discuss on our Facebook page, HERE.

KitGuru Says: Would you like to see Deus Ex make a comeback? Which studio would you like to see take on the project? 

Earlier this week we learned that the studio behind Deus Ex Human Revolution and Mankind Divided, Eidos Montreal, was undergoing a third round of job cuts, including the departure of the Studio's head. As it turns out, this most recent round of layoffs may have been spurred by a major game cancellation. 

According to Insider Gaming, Eidos Montreal had spent years developing a new game known internally as “Wildlands”. This major open-world project began development in 2019 and was nearing the final stages of development when it was cancelled earlier this year.

From what we know, Wildlands was going to be a new IP and not linked to any other franchise Eidos is known for. In fact, it sounds like it would have had a lot in common with something like Biomutant. The resources allocated to this game may have been a contributing factor in a couple of other game cancellations though, including a new Deus Ex title and a Legacy of Kain reboot.

It is unclear what Eidos will work on next. The studio has not shipped a game since Guardians of the Galaxy in 2021, which did garner positive reviews, but didn't become a sales hit. In the meantime, the studio is reportedly doing contract work for projects like Fable and Grounded 2.

KitGuru Says: The current gaming market has a distinct lack of immersive sims and stealth-action games. A new Deus Ex would fill that gap in the market nicely. 

Fans of the Deus Ex franchise must unfortunately brace for more bad news. Eidos Montreal has been hit with another wave of layoffs, reducing headcount for a third year in a row, indicating that a new major game is not close to coming out.

In a statement shared this week, Eidos Montreal confirmed that it is letting go of another 124 employees, marking the third year in a row that the studio has made cuts. This most recent round of layoffs also coincides with studio head, David Anfossi, stepping down from his position at the company.

Eidos Montréal formed in the late 2000s before joining Square Enix. While under the Japanese publisher, the studio led the revival of the Deus Ex franchise, resulting in 2011's Mankind Divided and 2016's Human Revolution. Square Enix ultimately sold off Eidos Montreal and the Deus Ex IP to Embracer Group in 2022.

Eidos Montreal has not shipped a game since 2021's Guardians of the Galaxy, which did score well in reviews but ultimately did not hit its sales targets. It has been rumoured for years that Eidos has been trying to get a new Deus Ex game greenlit but due to the financial situation at Embracer Group in recent years, it has been unable to secure the funding. In recent years, Eidos has found work as a support studio for other major AAA projects at non-Embracer studios.

KitGuru Says: It is a real shame to see what is happening to Eidos Montreal. In an ideal world, they would have instantly jumped into work on a new Deus Ex game after joining Embracer. At the rate things are going though, we may not see a new Deus Ex game again.

Emil Pagliarulo has worked on a lot of the games you loved over the years, including Thief II: The Metal Age, Oblivion and Fallout 3.  It is that last one that…