Ilari Kuittinen, head of Housemarque, believes that without merging with Sony, the company would not have been able to transition to developing AAA games. In an interview with Helsingin Sanomat, he shared that the development of their new project, Saros, was only made possible due to the financial backing from Sony.
The exact budget for Housemarque’s upcoming game isn’t specified in the article, but it’s mentioned to be in the tens of millions of euros, comparable to Alan Wake 2, which cost Remedy €70 million to produce. Kuittinen stated that he cannot imagine investments of this scale for an independent studio. He further added that the team can now concentrate on creating games that resonate with the developers themselves, instead of spreading resources across numerous smaller projects simply to survive.
Saros is described as a third-person shooter with roguelike elements, set on a space-faring planet facing a menacing eclipse. A key difference from Housemarque’s previous title, Returnal, is the inclusion of permanent resources and progression in Saros. While the game world will change after each player death, the protagonist will retain equipment upgrades, allowing them to grow stronger. Saros is currently slated for release in 2026.
Finley Holt