Respawn opens third studio to keep Apex Legends going for '10 to 15 years'

gamesindustry.biz:

The ongoing popularity of Apex Legends has caused Respawn to open its third studio, the company has announced.

Originally founded by former Call of Duty developers and debuting with military sci-fi shooter Titanfall in 2014, later working on the Star Wars Jedi series, Respawn is best known for Apex Legends, a battle royale that began life as a spin-off of Titanfall.

While the studio continues to gain attention with its upcoming Star Wars game – Jedi Survivor – it's Apex Legends that's driving the growth, and it’s that game that has prompted the firm’s new branch in Madison, Wisconsin.

While the latest studio may contribute to other Respawn products in future, the initial focus will be to support Apex Legends.

"Producing content on the scale and pace Apex requires is no easy feat," says Greg Wilson, Respawn vice president and general manager of the Apex franchise. "So we are always working to bring in more talent, more experience, more ideas, more capabilities.."

To lead the new team, Respawn has hired Ryan Burnett as studio director for Wisconsin. Prior to his previous position at Epic Games as director of engine production, Burnett spent 14 years at Call of Duty studio Raven Software – just one of the major studios based in the area.

"Wisconsin is quickly becoming a central development hub here," he says. "I've been here a long time working on FPS games, so we think there's a really good hotbed of talent here we can pull from."

He continues: "When I look at the Apex franchise, I think it's one of the best out there. The gameplay, the movement and the gunplay are nothing like anything else out there. We’re best in class when you look at other battle royale competitors in terms of movement and gameplay. The other