Harry Krueger, the game director behind Returnal and Nex Machina, is leaving Housemarque after 14 long years, the studio has announced.
There doesn’t appear to be any word yet on where he’s headed, but Housemarque has thanked Krueger for his contributions in a post dated today, noting that he helped transform the Finnish developer from an indie studio into something bigger:
Reflecting on his journey, Harry expressed deep pride in contributing to the studio’s legacy, especially with the latest and largest title, Returnal: a project that evolved the company from an indie studio scale to a full priced title, rewarded with multiple awards. He reminisced about the evolution and breakthroughs during the early days of Outland, Resogun, and ending the indie dream with Nex Machina.
“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. 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. 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,” said Krueger.
“Throughout Harry’s tenure, we’ve seen the ‘death of Arcade’, and also achieved growth milestones we once only dreamed of. Harry’s passion and direction have been vital in sculpting our studio’s trajectory to the current scale. The rebirth of ‘Arcade’, defined by Returnal, speaks volumes of his impact and vision, and is a great point for future leaders to take over and keep improving upon,” added Ilari Kuittinen, General Manager and Co-Founder of Housemarque.
And while Krueger presumably won’t be involved, Housemarque has confirmed that it’s gearing up for a new, big project, one that the studio has described as being “the next big thing from Finland.”
Returnal originally launched as a PS5 exclusive but is also available now on PC via Steam and the Epic Games Store.
Here’s a description of the port, which launched on February 15 this year:
Break the cycle as this award-winning third-person shooter brings bullet hell action to PC. Selene’s roguelike odyssey arrives with a suite of arresting graphical and performance-based enhancements to ensure an unforgettable journey. This includes the full Returnal experience, complete with Suspend Cycle, Photo and Co-op Modes, as well as the Tower of Sisyphus included from day one.