The House Expands – ‘Elsewhere’ Studio Announced, New AAA Studio under Activision

Following the purchase of Activision Blizzard King, many wondered about the future of those teams. The obvious expectation is that many will remain working on Call of Duty. However, the world was surprised with Crash 4: It’s About Time developer Toys for Bob split off from the company. Announced May 16th, 2024, a new AAA studio called Elsewhere Entertainment was announced by the publisher.

What is Elsewhere Entertainment?

Activision revealed in a press statement the following about their new developer;

Activision has formed an all-new internal studio, Elsewhere Entertainment.  The new team, headquartered in Warsaw, Poland, with additional resources in the U.S., is exclusively focused on creating a new narrative-based and genre-defining AAA franchise.

Built from the ground up, Elsewhere Entertainment is a premier and standalone studio dedicated to establishing an environment that inspires bold and diverse ideas. The team’s underlying mission encourages everyone to explore and collaborate creatively to craft a franchise with an enduring legacy that resonates far beyond games.

In addition to this information, the talent housed in this studio is impressive.

The talented team at Elsewhere Entertainment consists of a collection of storytelling experts whose credits include The Last of Us, Uncharted, The Witcher, Cyberpunk, Destiny, Tom Clancy’s The Division, and Far Cry.

Having a ton of talent from popular Ubisoft franchises and former Naughty Dog developers inspires much confidence.

Confused Optics for Microsoft Gaming

The reason this news was such a surprise is the news that proceeded this announcement. When it was revealed that various Bethesda studios were going to be shuttered, before that announcement nearly two thousand were laid off across the Xbox family of studios in January 2024.

So as a company, Microsoft is ‘trimming the fat’ so to speak. So why form up a new studio amid all this change internally?

The Houses Have Different Leaders

While Matt Booty oversees Bethesda and Activision/Blizzard, those entities clearly run things differently. This is further supported by recent comments Xbox Game Studio’s developer Ninja Theory made when interviewed by Kinda Funny Games.

When asked about the confidence in their partnership with Xbox, they stated the following;

Our team are feeling really good about the game, we are super proud of it… We feel good and confident in the game.

So while this could be a non-answer on first impression, the entire interview makes it clear the studio is pleased with the enviroment Hellblade 2 was created within.

Studio Sutters More Complex Than Expected

There is also the idea that the studio closures do not correlate with what many, myself included, have suggested. That Game Pass isn’t sustainable and the studio closures in a way, confirming that.

But if that is the case, why close studios and then a week later, open a new one? As mentioned, each ‘house’ under the Microsoft Gaming family has different goals.

So while Bethesda is trying to expand its pillar IP like Fallout to release at a more consistent clip, Activision is instead investing in new IP due to already providing insane capital for Microsoft through Call of Duty and Candy Crush.

What Could Elsewhere Entertainment be Working On?

Looking through the talent the press release mentioned, it is anyone’s guess.

One possibility could be a more linear Last of Us or Uncharted-styled experience, due to former Naughty Dog developers being at the studio. And maybe even weaving in open-world elements with the large quantity of Ubisoft talent present as well.

A surprising idea could be something in the stylings of Cyberpunk. First-person titles have a great home within Xbox, as many of their first-party teams already make games in that perspective. Having former Cyberpunk developers leading a project could make for an amazing video game, considering the quality of that release and its Phantom Liberty DLC.

When Will Their Game Be Revealed?

While I would’ve said sometime in 2025, announcing the studio before the Xbox Games Showcase is a curious decision. Why not announce the studio during your showcase, making a loud statement of ‘we support new talent’ and trying to wash away the bad PR from the Bethesda closures?

This team is likely working on an announcement trailer as I write this article, so we will see in a few weeks if this prediction is valid or not. In addition, having an announcement trailer ready for the Xbox Games Showcase could help staff up the studio, showing the many developers sadly out of work a new opportunity for the next few years.

Closing Thoughts

This studio announcement reminds me of EA’s recent efforts with the Jedi series and the Dead Space remake. A big AAA publisher known for bad decisions slowly turning itself around.

This does not undo the damage Microsoft has done to the Xbox brand across 2024 up until this point, but this could be the first in many efforts to turn things around. Alongside Call of Duty potentially launching into Xbox Game Pass, Activision could be the ‘X’ factor in bolstering the Xbox brand.

Are you hopeful for this studio’s upcoming project? Let us know in the comments below!