PlayStation’s stable of first-party development teams has grown bigger with the announcement of teamLFG, a new studio based out of Bellevue, Washington.
Spinning out from Destiny 2 and Marathon developer Bungie, teamLFG is composed of veteran developers who worked on games such as Destiny, Halo, Roblox, Fortnite, League of Legends, and Rec Room, in addition to developers that are new to the industry. According to Sony Interactive Entertainment’s Studio Business Group CEO, Hermen Hulst, the team is working on an incubation project that he calls “ambitious.” As part of the its introductory message to the world, teamLFG confirmed that it is a multiplayer focused studio and gave a bit more information about its first game, confirming that it will be a live-service multiplayer game.
“The “LFG” in ‘teamLFG’ stands for ‘Looking For Group.’ We are driven by a mission to create games where players can find friendship, community, and belonging. We want our players to feel excited when they log on to discover their teammates already hanging out online. We want our players to recognize familiar names and to make myths and memes out of each other. We want our players to love remembering that one time where they pulled off That Play that changed the whole story of the match. As we say on the team – dat’s da good stuff.
“We will make immersive multiplayer worlds propelled by action games that players can learn, play, and master for countless hours. We want to build our games with our communities, inviting players to be a part of our development process through early access playtests. It’s critical that we stay nimble enough to react to player feedback, not just in our lead-up to launch, but throughout live service as we continue to grow the game and community for years to come.
“Our first game is a team-based action game that draws inspiration from fighting games, platformers, MOBAs, life sims, and frog-type games. Players will inhabit a lighthearted, comedic world set in brand-new, mythic, science-fantasy universe. We can’t wait to reveal more.”
Reports have circulated for a while now about the existence of this studio and their game, codenamed Gummy Bears, however this is the first time it’s been officially acknowledged by Sony. I’m eager to see what teamLFG is working on, but I can’t help but hold some reservations about yet another live-service game coming from PlayStation Studios. It’s no secret that Sony’s live-service plans have fallen apart ever since Concord failed last year. I’ve wondered what would happen in the aftermath and lamented Sony’s desire to chase trends, but always expected this project from teamLFG to release. My worry here is that the game will fall victim to the same fate as its other cancelled brethren and lead to the closure of a studio that doesn’t deserve it, all because of an ill-advised dream of raking in huge live-service profits.
I’m not sure when we’ll get our first look at this game. The team might be getting their formal announcement now, but the game could be ready for an official reveal sooner than we think. There’s sure to be plenty of speculation about what it’ll look like and its viability in a crowded live-service space until that reveal happens. All we can do right now is let the team crack away at their project and hope that it not only manages to hit with players when it’s properly revealed, but also connect with people upon release and build a strong community.
TheComfySpot 