Glen Schofield Departs Striking Distance Studios After The Callisto Protocol's Struggles

Politics, News Sept. 21, 2023, 5:47 a.m.

Co-creator of Dead Space, Glen Schofield, is leaving Striking Distance Studios due to The Callisto Protocols commercial underperformance, following layoffs. New leadership steps in.

Glen Schofield, one of the co-creators of the renowned Dead Space franchise, is parting ways with Striking Distance Studios due to the underwhelming commercial performance of their inaugural game, the sci-fi horror title, The Callisto Protocol.

Striking Distance Studios was founded by Schofield in 2019, with backing from the Korean publisher Krafton Inc. Their initial vision was to create a narrative-driven game set in the PUBG: Battlegrounds universe, although any ties to PUBG were later severed prior to The Callisto Protocol's December 2022 release.

Unfortunately, The Callisto Protocol received mixed critical reviews and fell short of anticipated sales. In January, it was reported that Krafton had expected to sell five million copies of the game, which had been in development for three years at a cost of £132 million. However, by that time, only two million copies had been sold.

Following the release of the concluding DLC chapter, Final Transmission, in June, Striking Distance Studios made the difficult decision to lay off 32 employees as part of efforts to refocus the studio's priorities.

Now, Bloomberg reports that CEO Glen Schofield is also departing the studio, with Krafton stating that he has chosen to explore new opportunities. Krafton additionally confirmed that Striking Distance's Chief Operating Officer and Chief Financial Officer will be leaving concurrently, asserting that all three departures were voluntary.

Schofield's role will be assumed by Chief Development Officer Steve Papoutsis. Schofield expressed mixed emotions about his departure, describing it as "bittersweet," but expressing confidence that the studio is in capable hands.