It didn't take Uncharted series writer and director Amy Hennig long to find a new job. She's joined Dead Space studio Visceral Games as the creative director for their new Star Wars game.
"Over the last few weeks, Amy and I have spent a lot of time talking about what her first project would be," said Visceral VP and General Manager Steve Papoutsis on the official EA blog. "There are a lot of different directions we could have gone, but I could sense that what really excited her about this opportunity (because let’s face it, we weren’t the only ones knocking at her door) was Star Wars. Amy’s a huge fan. We happen to be making a Star Wars game."
"Just thinking about the possibilities made both of us even more excited about having her join the team."
Hennig left Uncharted developer Naughty Dog a month ago. During her decade with that company, she directed all three Uncharted games for the PS3 and the upcoming PS4 game. She also won Writers Guild of America awards for her writing on the second and third games. Before her years at Naughty Dog, she wrote and directed several games at Crystal Dynamics. Papoutsis worked alongside her at CD on the Legacy of Kain series.
"As both a colleague and friend, I’ve always admired her approach to creative development – focusing on nailing down the soul of a game first, and then making sure the writing, the gameplay, the design and the art comes together to form a unified, interactive experience for the player. This fits in perfectly with what we’re trying to do here at Visceral and Amy’s going to help us continue in our pursuit to make the most thrilling, immersive games in the world."
Visceral's Star Wars game hasn't been formally announced yet. The studio's years of experience with the Dead Space series suggests that it's going to be an action-adventure. If Hennig was interested enough to join the project, the mystery game probably has a strong focus on story, too.
Hennig, who also announced her new gig on Twitter, didn't give away any details on the game. She's awfully excited to be working on Star Wars, though.
EA bought the exclusive rights to create PC and console Star Wars games last year. CEO Andrew Wilson said recently that they want to take a Batman: Arkham style approach to the Star Wars franchise.
