Studio additions are always a fun topic to comb over as development teams will have yet another set of hands to assist in the final product of a upcoming title. Just last month, it was reported that former Santa Monica Studio developer Erik Jakobsen would be departing from the one development team to another in the same city for Microsoft’s The Initiative. In a newer report, yet another former Sony Interactive Entertainment developer leaves for Xbox Game Studios.
According to a post that surfaced on NeoGaf, Naughty Dog Environment Artist Andrew Watkins updated his LinkedIn page revealing his new position at Ninja Theory. Now given the role as Senior Environment Artist, Watkins will take a bigger responsibility at the Microsoft-owned first-party developer.
Watkins history with Naughty Dog stretches nearly a decade back to is commencement at the studio in 2011, leaving the implication that he worked on a handful of Naughty Dog’s most definitive projects. Naming a few such as Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception, The Last of Us, Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End, and assumably The Last of Us Part II. Seeing his history involved with the studio, this marks a major advantage for what Ninja theory has planned for their upcoming projects.
Currently, Ninja Theory is in active development on the upcoming first-person slasher Bleeding Edge which is scheduled to arrive later in March. Following with the anticipated sequel for Hellblade 2: Senua’s Saga which was just announced last month at the Game Awards: the title is expected to release sometime following the arrival of the simultaneously revealed Xbox Series X.
What do you think his new addition to Ninja Theory will mean for the studio’s upcoming releases?
Source: NeoGaf
