In an interview with The Game Business, Split Fiction director Josef Fares defended Electronic Arts (EA), stating that the company receives more criticism than it deserves, particularly in the video game industry.
He explains that for Hazelight Studios, which he founded and with which he has produced several other excellent titles including It Takes Two and A Way Out, the relationship with EA is very positive. The partnership they have through EA Originals respects the studio’s creative freedom, and Fares says that EA’s staff are real people who are passionate about games, not executives who are removed from development:
“All the people I am surrounded with at EA are gamers. They love games. It’s not like I’m sitting with corporate people with suits. It’s not like that. And people should not worry, because Hazelight will do always what it wants.”
He acknowledges that all publishers make mistakes sometimes, citing Nintendo, Microsoft, and even Sony as examples, but believes that EA is unfairly considered the “villain” of the industry, when for Hazelight, this collaboration works very well and does not limit its creativity.
