For a long time, fans of the popular series TimeSplitters were expecting a new entry. Unfortunately, due to economic and related reasons, the studio behind the games, Free Radical Design, shut down after being reformed in 2021. According to a recent interview with an ex-employee, the community has come to find out more about what went wrong.
From reasons ranging from a plethora of changes made to the upcoming game to a toxic work culture that stopped employees from truly expressing themselves, here’s a better look at all that went wrong.
TimeSplitters Was Going to Be a F2P Game With Micro-transactions
Unsettling, right? Well, according to an interview with the anonymous ex-employee, that’s just part of the story. For about 2 years, the game was well into development and went through quite a few changes. However, originally, the new TimeSplitters game was very much like a Fortnite clone, and the team simply wasn’t happy with the decision.
It would ideally be a battle royale game, with other modes like team deathmatch, capture the flag, and deathmatch. Classic online multiplayer modes, but a clear drive-away from what TimeSplitters excelled at as a franchise.
The anonymous ex-employee happened to confirm the validity of all this thanks to an image. It showcases the character Maiden’s dirt marks on her legs. This seems to be from the official portfolio and character design.
Furthermore, the ex-employee explained how the game was rebuilt and transitioned into Unreal Engine 5, and there was no marketing for the game whatsoever because of the lack of actual work to show. This may be a little disheartening, considering how 2-3 years of artwork was scratched too, considering the game’s re-do.
The game’s fresh direction was something like TimeSplitters 2, with the level design belonging to TimeSplitters 3. This would also include an original level from earlier games and new sections to explore. While the game was still in its battle royale phase, there wasn’t a lot of story to look forward to. However, there were a few points of interest named Ancient Astronaturs and a Space Bar to look forward to. These would act as hubs or social points in the game.
The game’s director, Steve Ellis, made the team take a break from the game and spend time (a few weeks) combining concepts like the Dam and a campaign mode in hopes of a fresh turn for the narrative. This would ideally resonate well with a linear progression for the game.
The Future of the Project and Everything Wrong Behind the Scenes
Unfortunately, the ex-employee suggested that the game was completely shut down. They were also not sure whether Plaion had any hopes for the game. The only concrete thing they knew was that Free Radical saw a complete layoff except for the game director (Steve), and there’s not much known about the game ever since.
A big thing that the anonymous ex-employee said had to do with the company’s work culture. They point out something quite concerning:
I enjoyed it for the most part, got on well with most people. However, as time went on it became clear that most of the leads didn’t really have a plan, nor did Steve. Some also had a bit of a power trip, favourites were played and some people got royally shafted, leading to a number of people choosing to leave before the end.
There was also a problematic scenario with how employees interacted with one another:
if you’re under 30, you know literally nothing.
This was pretty much the attitude of the seniors at the workplace. Despite that, much of the team seemed to have played it safe. Almost everyone was told that the company was cutting costs and the project had to see delays, which slowly drained resources, and well, the rest is history.
The ex-employee went on to explain how, despite keeping their heads down and hoping for the best, nothing truly turned into fruition. They blame this on Embracer’s wrongful decision-making. Conclusively, it seems that we’ll probably never see the revival of TimeSplitters, which is a bittersweet ending to a franchise so loved by its fanbase.
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