Starbreeze CEO GamesIndustry.biz interview

Q: Do you feel a pressure to satisfy the fans and the legacy of this classic EA franchise?

Johan Kristiansson: Yes, it's always a trade-off when you work on a classic property in how much you should be true to the original and how much you should reinvent or create something new. It's a pretty tough trade-off and something we're discussing here everyday.

Q: When are we going to hear more about this project - when can we expect an official clarification of what the game is, exactly?

Johan Kristiansson: I'm not sure about that. We've not really decided on when to go public with that yet.

Q: There seems to be a lot of confidence from the Nordic region, with local studios such as Grin, Massive and Starbreeze working on high-profile projects. But as an independent studio, what are the big threats or concerns you face as a developer?

Johan Kristiansson: With the projects becoming increasingly bigger, the greenlighting projects with publishers is also becoming increasingly complex. It takes a lot of time for someone to greenlight a really big production. It takes a lot of time in planning and there's always this horror scenario of having a team without any revenue. Sometimes it's a pretty stressful situation where you need to co-ordinate your production schedule and the staff that you have together with the greenlighting process from publishers. Transaction costs of getting these major projects is high, so that can certainly be a challenge.

Starbreeze Studios' Johan Kristiansson