The director of first-party PlayStation racer DriveClub has said he’ll announce his new project this year – but it’s not a racing game.
Paul Rustchynsky, who was additionally lead designer on several MotorStorm titles atSony‘s Evolution Studios, is currently working on an unannounced project as part ofAvalanche Studios’ new Liverpool development team, which was formedlast summer.
“In 2021 we (Avalanche Studios Group) opened a new studio in Liverpool, an exciting moment for me having achieved one of my career goals,” Rustchynsky wroteon Twitter. “In 2022 we’ll get to announce the game we’ve been working on for the past year”.
Headded: “To set some expectations, I’m not working on a racing game. So sorry, no DRIVECLUB sequel, MotorStorm successor or ONRUSH offshoot. This is something very different to anything I’ve worked on before.”
In a further post, the racing game veteran confirmed his unannounced project is based on an original IP: “There are more projects being worked on at Avalanche than most people would expect!”
Avalanche Liverpool currently has multiple former Evolution Studios staff on its payroll, which will likely make the news that it’s not working on a racing game surprising to some fans.
Following Evolution Studios’ closure in 2016, the majority of its staff were hired byCodemastersto work on a new racing project.
However, following disappointing sales of 2018’s Onrush, several members of the Codemasters EVO development division, including Rustchynsky, werereportedlylet go and the division shifted towards a support role for other titles, such as 2020’sDirt 5.
Rustchynsky previously told fans he thinksa remaster or sequel for PlayStation’s DriveClubwas “extremely unlikely”.
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“Sony have GT as their key racing franchise & the cost to bring even a remaster back would cost a fortune in licensing,” he explained.
Switching attention to MotorStorm, Rustchynsky added: “Sony owns the IP & could resurrect it at any time, but I’m not aware of any projects underway. I’d say chances are low, but I wouldn’t rule it out. So keep the hope!”
