Criterion Games is best known these days for helping DICE with the vehicles in titles like Star Wars Battlefront 2, but the studio was once a vibrant developer with their own games to speak of, like Burnout Paradise (itself rumoured to be receiving a remaster). It seems those days may come again, with a new job posting seeing the company hiring for their “own brand new IP”.
Seen on the Criterion Games site, the studio is seeking a new lead combat designer, specifically with experience in melee and action adventure combat with a physicality to it. Even though the Criterion of today is a way different studio than the one that made Burnout, the suggested action-adventure melee focused combat IP would be a bold new direction for what has been a studio based almost exclusively on vehicle based gameplay.
Another hint on what this might be comes from an environment artist contract job, which lists experience in open world game production as a plus. Seems like whatever this new title is, it will be new ground for Criterion.