Xbox Pioneer Forms Jar Of Sparks, New Studio Dedicated To AAA Action-Adventure Games

ign.com:

Another new AAA studio has joined the gaming scene, this one founded by Jerry Hook, one of the architects of the original Xbox who most recently worked on Halo Infinite.

The new studio's mission is to "create a new generation of narrative-driven action games" with "immersive worlds." Its founding members include Paul Crocker, who served as lead narrative director on the Batman: Arkham trilogy; Greg Stone, who produced DOOM (2016), and Steve Dyck, who worked on SSX, NBA Street, and the Halo series. Hook's new venture follows his departure from 343 Industries, where he served head of design on Halo Infinite. Hook also helped launch Xbox Live and worked on Halo 4, Halo 5, and Destiny in various capacities.

Jerry Hook is the founder of Jar of Sparks. He most recently served as Halo Infinite's head of design. Image Credit: Jar of Sparks

Speaking with IGN in an interview ahead of the announcement, Hook says that the collective decision to leave 343 Industries was part of the natural cycle of departures that follows the release of a major project.

"I took a step back and really wanted to take a look at what is the impact I wanted to have moving forward; what is the impact I wanted to have not just with games or the next big idea, but really taking a look at teams and how could I build a home for creators and content creators who could really flourish and specifically help them grow so that they can put their entire passion against a project," Hook says. "And so on top of creative ideas and new game ideas and all the innovation that goes into games, I realized that probably my biggest challenge was we haven't really, in the game development space, spent a lot of time trying to innovate with teams and studios and studio structures."