Criterion co-founders depart from the studio, start new games company
Criterion Games vice president and creative director Alex Ward as well as studio director Fiona Sperry are gone from the company. EA confirmed to Polygon that the two Criterion co-founders “have decided to leave EA.”
A spokesperson said:
“Alex Ward and Fiona Sperry have decided to leave EA. We appreciate their many contributions through the years and wish them well in their future endeavours.
“The incredibly creative and talented team at Criterion are hard at work on a new project for next-gen consoles as new IP continues to be a major priority across EA. Matt Webster is leading development of the new game and the Criterion studio moving forward. Matt has been part of Criterion for years and has an exciting vision for this new game.”
Ward followed up on the news with a confirmation that he and Sperry have formed a new games company:
The news breaks. Along with @FionaSperry I have left @CriterionGames . Welcome to the REAL #tothefuture
— Alex Ward (@AlexanderJWard) January 3, 2014
@davescook Just decided to start afresh and form a new games company with @FionaSperry #freshstart
— Alex Ward (@AlexanderJWard) January 3, 2014
