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Josef Fares, the director of It Takes Two and the upcoming Split Fiction, said that Hazelight Studios will never make a live-service game.

"We will not have them, I do not believe in them," Fares said in an interview with Eurogamer. "I think [live service] is not the right way to go. I hope more and more [developers] focus on their passion and what they believe in."

Fares explained that he understands the financial pressures of having to make live-service games, but emphasized the need to not lose all focus on creativity. He believes that there should be a balance between the financial and creative aspects, as developers can't just ask for $100 million in funding and do whatever they want.

He pointed to the success Hazelight has seen as evidence that "trust[ing] in your vision" can still lead to a "big audience." Last year, Hazelight revealed that It Takes Two had surpassed 20 million copies sold.

Other studios have recently followed the live-service trend to varying success. PlayStation started its live-service initiative several years ago. While Helldivers 2 exceeded expectations, games like Concord failed to take off and several games have been canceled, including Naughty Dog's The Last of Us multiplayer game and reportedly a God of War live-service one.

Bungie veteran Joe Tung said that the live-service model is better than the traditional $60 box approach, as it helps developers consider what's best for players in the long-term. In a recent earnings call, Ubisoft said that it would double down on both live-service games and open-world action adventure titles.

Fares also recently discussed his thoughts about AI and its effects on the video game industry, saying that it needs to learn how to work with AI and other emerging technologies.

Hazelight's previous game, It Takes Two, won Game of the Year at The Game Awards 2021. The studio's next game, Split Fiction, launches on March 6 for PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X|S. Like Hazelight's past projects, Split Fiction is a co-op adventure game and it follows two women named Zoe and Mio as they traverse through both fantasy and sci-fi-themed levels in order to survive.