Burnout and Need for Speed studio Criterion is down to just 15 employees, but that's just the way its creative director likes it. Alex Ward clarified the studio's status in a over the weekend, revealing that more than 60 employees split off earlier this year to continue work on the Need for Speed franchise as 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询: Criterion pur🤡sues a non-racing💟 project.

Most of Criterion was working with Ghost Games on 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:Need for Speed Rivals, Ward said. That portion of the studio has became Ghost UK, counterpart to its Gothenburg, Sweden headquarters. This explains how the new studio was able to 澳洲幸运5🧸开奖号码历史查询:take over the flagship racing series so quickly.

When Criterion began moving toward its new pr💧oject, it made more sense to cha꧑nge up the studios rather than reintegrate teams just to keep the band together.

"We would rather work a small team all focused on gameplay rather than a huge ꦅteam split by discipline," Ward said. "We didn't want to take on 50 people when they are not needed. Too many folks too soon dilutes solving gameplay problems."

The remaining 15 at Criterion will continue their work at a new location. The change🐬 was "completely our choice and by design," Ward said, defending EA's involvement with the wholly owned studio.

"We're fortunate to be part of a big organisation that curates and invests in new intellectual properties. It really isn't the evil empire."