Housemarque has announced the departure of Harry Kreuger, who was game director on 2021’s acclaimed roguelike shooter Returnal. Kreuger departs after nearly 15 years at the studio, having also worked on titles like Nex Machina, Resogun, and Outland. In 2014, he became the studio’s game director.
“During my 14 years at Housemarque, I’ve been incredibly fortunate to work on one dream project after another, and had the privilege of working alongside some truly talented and wonderful people along the way,” Krueger said. “It’s been an honor to accompany Housemarque on this journey, witnessing our growth from our smaller arcade-inspired titles to the magnificent heights we reached with Returnal. We really shook the pillars of heaven together, and I will forever be proud of all the amazing things we’ve accomplished as a studio.”
Krueger went on to add that he leaves with “a glowing optimism for the future” of Housemarque, which is currently working on its next big title.
“Departing from Housemarque was a very difficult decision for me, but I’m leaving the company with nothing but deep gratitude for the past, and a glowing optimism for the future – with an exciting new project in the works, a fantastic team that’s stronger than ever, and the continuous support of Sony and PlayStation Studios, I know that Housemarque’s brightest chapter has yet to be written,” he said.
Not much is known yet about what Housemarque’s next project is. Following its acquisition by Sony in 2021, the studio confirmed that it wanted to continue working on big projects, and that it intended to “go beyond” Returnal with whatever it would work on next.
In March 2022, it was confirmed that Housemarque’s next title would be another new IP, while senior narrative designer Eevi Korhonen later suggested that the game would make use of unused ideas from Returnal. Earlier this year, the developer confirmed that its headcount had grown to 110 people.
Returnal is available on PS5 and PC. As of July 2021, the game had sold over 560,000 units worldwide.