After two years spent with Square Enix Montreal, creative director Teddy Diefenbach has called it quits. If the name rings familiar, Diefenbach worked on Hyper Light Drifter, a 2-D action RPG that released last year to critical acclaim from indie studio Heart Machine.
The move comes after the project his team was working on was canceled, leaving Diefenbach to make a hard choice. He announced his decision on his personal blog and confirmed what his next move would see him return to the world of indie game design.
“My team were working on a game that I deeply wish we could have shared with you. But the business strategy of the studio shifted, and our project was sadly no longer compatible,” he continued, “But the business strategy of the studio shifted, and our project was sadly no longer compatible. Thankfully, the talented team remain employed and valued, assigned to other projects. Because of this shift and the loss of our project, I no longer feel this is the place for me to pursue the type of work I aspire to make – the avenues of storytelling in game design I’ve been trying to explore in my career.”
After taking up the position in May 2016, Diefenbach and his team set out to make something exciting but ultimately is no longer the case.
As for this team that he collaborated with at the Montreal studio, they have all been reassigned to other projects currently ongoing. Diefenbach heads back to Los Angeles to continue indie development, and hopefully, we see a sequel to Hyper Light Drifter.
