Batman Arkham Studio Bosses Out Ahead Of Suicide Squad Release
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Ashley Bardhan
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WB Games president David Haddad announced on Rocksteady’s website today that the video game developer’s co-founders, Sefton Hill and Jamie Walker, are leaving the studio at the end of 2022. Rocksteady, which created the Batman: Arkham series, is set to release its anticipated pseudo-spin-off, Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League, in 2023.
“With Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League nearly finished, they have both decided to leave Rocksteady at the end of 2022 and will begin a new adventure in gaming,” Haddad writes in the announcement. “We have the utmost respect and gratitude for Jamie and Sefton and wish them all the best in their new endeavor, and like many fans, we look forward to what they do next. ”
Haddad did not share details of “what they do next,” but Hill and Walker—who founded Rocksteady in 2004—could well be looking to do it all over again. They were still an active part of the studio, with Hill most recently acted as Suicide Squad’s game director. Stepping up in their place are director of production Nathan Burlow, who Haddad calls an “original founding member,” promoted to studio director, and Darius Sadeghian, who will become studio product director.
“Nathan and Darius are extremely talented executives and they are passionate about continuing the high-quality game development of Rocksteady for Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League and all future games,” Haddad wrote.
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About their sudden departure, Hill and Walker wrote in the announcement that, “From the day we founded the company in 2004 all the way to today, Rocksteady has been our life and soul.
It has given us the opportunity to do what we love most: make great games with exceptionally talented people.”
Hill and Walker emphasized the community at Rocksteady, saying that “there is something extra special about Rocksteady that goes beyond the games we make, and everyone who works here feels it.”
“We want to thank the team for their hard work and everything they bring to make this such a great place to be,” the pair continued. “Now with Suicide Squad in safe hands, and the team here stronger than ever, it’s time to hand over the reins, and for us to start a new adventure together in games.”
Earlier this fall, Suicide Squad writer Kim MacAskill passed on a lifetime achievement award from from nonprofit Women in Games, saying that event sponsors Rocksteady and Warner Bros. Interactive need to “take accountability.”
“You can throw your name on every diversity event going,” she said, “but unless you take accountability, it means nothing and I see you.
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In 2020, Rocksteady responded to a report by The Guardian detailing sexual harassment in its workplace, saying, “All formal complaints were thoroughly investigated, addressed appropriately and a number of serious measures were taken in response to the issues that were surfaced, including discipline or termination of staff.”
Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League
Why you can trust Pocket-lint
(Pocket-lint) — It’s been a while since Rocksteady dropped a new game, but anticipation is heating up for its next title — Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League.
The game will see players take control of the infamous squad of baddies as they’re forced to contend with the true greats of the DC comics world, from The Flash to Superman. Find out all the key details right here.
For more on upcoming games, check out our list of the most anticipated titles coming to PS5 or to Xbox Series X/S.
Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League release date
We’ve been waiting for Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League for a while now — it was initially slated to release in late 2022, after all.
However, the game is now pinned on a Spring 2023 release window, without a more precise date than that.
We’ve made the difficult decision to delay Suicide Squad: Kill The Justice League to Spring 2023. I know a delay is frustrating but that time is going into making the best game we can. I look forward to bringing the chaos to Metropolis together. Thanks for your patience. pic.twitter.com/VOSwTM6Zak
— Sefton Hill (@Seftonhill) March 23, 2022
That delay was announced in March 2022 as you can see above, with plenty of warning, and we haven’t heard much about the game since that point, so hopefully it won’t be much longer until we get a firmer release date to put in the calendar.
Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League platforms
This is a next-gen (or current-gen, really) experience, so you’ll only be able to play Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League on either the PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S or PC.
That should mean that we get some impressive visuals, along with more immersive sound and a wide sense of scale unlocked by the newer hardware.
Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League trailers
We’ve had a few glimpses of Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League, in the form of different types of trailers.
The first teaser trailer for the game came out in August 2020.
It’s a CGI trailer, so we can’t pin much on it, but it did showcase the tone that Rocksteady’s going for with some quirky, funny moments.
Then, in October 2021, we got a much more in-engine trailer that showcased the game’s story and a bunch of the adversaries we’ll be fighting during it.
Finally, in December 2021 we got an actual gameplay trailer that features quick looks at how each of the four player characters will control, as they try to fight The Flash.
Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League story
From the trailers released so far, it’s actually possible to build up a pretty clear idea of the story that will fuel Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League.
As in the films and comics of the same name, it looks like our antiheros will be recruited from prison by Amanda Waller, forced to do her bidding if they want to avoid being killed by bugs planted in their neck at any moment.
The four members of the squad are Deadshot, Captain Boomerang, Harley Quinn and King Shark, each with their own motivations and approach. Their struggles to work together as a team will doubtless be a big part of the story arc.
This time around, it sounds like the infamous Brainiac is the big bad, and that he’s somehow managed to infect or control the members of the Justice League.
Rocksteady
In various trailers we’ve had clear glimpses of The Flash, Superman, Wonder Woman, Green Lantern and, while not the man himself, the Batmobile suggests there might be some echoes of Batman to deal with, too. The game is set in the same world as the other Arkham games, after all.
That means we’d expect the game will involve running a gauntlet as the Squad faces off against each hero in turn (or sometimes at the same time), to put them down either permanently or so that they’re out of the picture.
The game is set in Metropolis, well known as the DC Universe’s capital city of sorts.
Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League gameplay
From what we’ve seen in trailers and what Rocksteady has said so far, Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League is going to build on everything that made the Batman Arkham games so great — with four characters to play with this time around.
Each will apparently have a moveset that’s wider and more complex than Batman on their own, so that means plenty of opportunities to experiment as you move around what looks like an open-world version of Metropolis completing missions and objectives.
Rocksteady
You can play on your own and swap between characters at will while bots control the other three, but the game will also be launching with full seamless four-player co-op, with drop-in and drop-out systems to let you play however you want.
This applies to the entire game, with no sections locked to a single character or to multiplayer or singleplayer, which sounds really exciting.
We don’t yet know whether that multiplayer will be cross-platform, but we’ll keep an ear to ground regarding that detail.
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Rocksteady Studios co-founders Jamie Walker and Sefton Hill will leave the company by the end of 2022 — Industry on DTF
They have been with the company for almost 18 years.
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- Hill and Walker announced their decision to leave the British studio behind the Batman Arkham series in an open letter on the Rocksteady website.
- They will be replaced by Nathan Berlow, who has been with the company since its inception, and Darius Sadeghyan as Director and Product Director, respectively.
- Hill and Walker have said production on the studio’s next game, Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League, is nearing its end and they are confident in Rocksteady’s new executives.
- What exactly the founders of the company will do in the future, they did not specify, but they are not going to leave gamedev.
Some of the most important moments in our careers have been due to the energy and talent of the team. It’s also a chance to work with Warner Bros. and DC on Batman games. And the fact that the Arkham games have become something more than we thought, and the opportunity to work with the heroes of our childhood, help aspiring developers and invest something in this industry that we love so much.
Finally, creating a company where people can be themselves and make great games together.
But the special ingredient of success is the Rocksteady fans. Their joy and support has become the fuel that pushes us to become better. They are also part of the Rocksready team and we thank each and every one of them for their support over these 18 years! Suicide Squad is in good hands and this studio is now stronger than ever, so it’s time to hand over the reins and start something new in the field of games.
Nathan and Darius have proven their skill and passion at Rocksteady over the years. They are industry veterans and we know full well that their loyalty, talent and energy will take the studio to new heights. We are very pleased that they will lead the company, and we wish them only the best.
Jamie Walker and Sefton Hill , co-founders of Rocksteady Studios
- Berlow and Sadegyan thanked the founders of the company for their guidance and experience, wishing them good luck in the future.
