Eight years after leaving the games industry, Gears of War creator Cliff Bleszinski is considering a full-time return to game development.
Bleszinski left the games industry in 2018 after the closure of his studio Boss Key Productions, caused by the commercial failure of its two games—the multiplayer arena shooter LawBreakers, and the ’80s themed Battle Royale game Radical Heights. At the time, Bleszinski swore off making games forever.
Yet now, in a wide-ranging interview with 80 Level, Bleszinski explained that’s considering coming back. In the chat, Bleszinski discussed the events of his life since leaving the games industry, during which he wrote an autobiography, produced a Tony award-winning musical, and faced up to a long struggle with alcoholism.
The latter resulted in Bleszinski being hospitalised in March this year, in the aftermath of which he gave up drinking. It’s been during his sobriety that Bleszinski says he rediscovered his love for games—and the desire to make them:
“At the end of the day, I want to create characters and worlds,” Bleszinski explained to journalist Brian Crecente. “I want to make stuff that people will cosplay and get tattooed on their bodies.”
Bleszinski has already returned to game development in an advisory role—having consulted on a horror game called Soul Walker. This experience appears to have been positive for him, as he’s now pondering a full-time comeback. “So maybe I’ll eventually get my full foot back in the business and hopefully not get pushed into the pool.”
Bleszinski didn’t go into detail about what kind of game he wants to make during the interview. But he did discuss what he won’t be making, namely PvP multiplayer games like those created by Boss Key:
“Good luck to anyone in that space,” he said. “I’m more of a fan of PvE these days. Horde mode saved Gears 2, and I believe that space is evergreen because players just want to hop online with friends and shoot some stuff, no frills, no questions asked.”
Nonetheless, it seems like Bleszinski has an idea he wants to pursue, even if he didn’t vocalise it. “I’m nowhere near sharing anything specific (about a new game), beyond that, I can’t walk into a Home Depot without seeing a full arsenal at every turn,” he said, adding that “There’s so much more than just chainsaws.”
PvP or not, I’d certainly be up for playing a new Bleszinski-led game. While LawBreakers failed to find an audience, as a multiplayer shooter it was thoroughly entertaining. Radical Heights had promise too, though it never got a chance to develop into something substantial.
Of course, I’d be most interested in a spiritual successor to Gears. That space has been left fallow for a long time, and Pragmata recently showed there’s a big appetite for that style of game. But all of this is contingent on whether Bleszinski actually comes back, which isn’t guaranteed. In 2020, Bleszinski said he felt an urge to make “a little game”. But for whatever reason that didn’t transpire, at least not publicly.