Former Mass Effect lead writer says new narrative-focused studio will "avoid painting ourselves in a corner"
eurogamer.netFormer Mass Effect lead writer Mac Walters has said his new studio Worlds Untold will be focused on creating fresh worlds and characters without limitation.
Its first project will be a near-future action-adventure game set «in a breathtaking world filled with mystery and exploration».
The recently-announced Worlds Untold is based in Vancouver with a fully remote operation, and has been injected with cash from Chinese game giant NetEase.
Walters announced his departure from Mass Effect maker BioWare in January, after more than 19 years at the company. During that time he worked on Jade Empire and the original Mass Effect, before serving as lead writer on Mass Effect 2 and 3.
The Mass Effect series is now continuing on without Walters on board, as BioWare returns to the Milky Way, picking up the pieces from its Reaper war.
Speaking to Eurogamer about his new studio launch, Walters said Worlds Untold was «founded on the idea of creating incredible IPs; worlds that have endless possibilities for storytelling».
«As someone who's been at the heart of building out new IPs in the past, I recognise the challenges, but also the opportunities with creating worlds from the ground up. In short, we spend a great amount of effort and care in crafting the world, then we turn our attention to the characters, and finally the story and gameplay.
»By being intentional in preserving the tenets of the IP, we make sure to create future opportunity for discovery, but also avoid painting ourselves into a corner that could lock us in a certain direction."
While the video game industry is dominated by a relatively small number of big franchises — indeed, BioWare's next projects are both the next chapters in its two biggest series — Walters
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