Not all studios have to be bursting at the seams with developers, it seems. Criterion Games, the storied game maker most known for its work on the Burnout series, has just 17 people under its roof since a chunk of its staff moved on to form the UK arm of EA's Ghost studio. That seems like the number of a company with one foot out the door, but Criterion's creative director, Alex Ward, has eased the fans’ minds by confirming that this type of close-knit team is what’s preferred.
"Most of the Studio was committed to helping on Rivals. A small group of us chose not to and began work on something new," he said on Twitter (via Game Industry International). "We would rather work a small team all focused on gameplay rather than a huge team split by discipline.
“Hence Ghost UK was formed from a load of Criterion folks. But 15 of us retain the Criterion identity and work in a new location… It's completely our choice and by design. Small teams do way more these days.
"We're fortunate to be part of a big organization [Electronic Arts] that curates and invests in new intellectual properties. It really isn't the evil empire."
What this new project looks like it yet to be revealed, but the current rumors point to it being something other than a racing title. With just a handful of developers in the British studio, though, expect a pretty long wait before we see the next big thing from Criterion.
