Ex-CoD dev Michael Condrey forms 2K studio to make new game

Former Sledgehammer Games and Call of Duty developer Michael Condrey is helming a new studio with 2K Games called 31st Union, and he’s already gotten to work on a game.

Since his departure from the Sledgehammer, Condrey has been rather outspoken about the popular series. In the months leading up to the release of Modern Warfare, he claimed Activision made Modern Warfare “controversial” so they would make headlines.

Following the release of the game, Condrey has maintained a lower profile, with a new studio to run. On February 11, news broke that his new company was named 31st Union and they are already developing a title.

According to a job listing, it sounds like this title could actually end up being a direct competitor to the Call of Duty franchise. The San Francisco based company is looking for somebody who has a “strong passion for online multiplayer action games.”

It sounds as though his studio will be gearing up to make something in the same vein as CoD, but details are unclear. It will be a hard task to take on if this is indeed what he has planned, since Activision said back in December that Modern Warfare has become the most-played CoD this console generation. With that said, Condrey remains excited about his “ambitious” new title.

“31st Union is off to an incredible start with a passionate and talented team, an intentioned culture that champions inclusivity and greater representation, and an ambitious and inspired new IP that we’re extremely excited about,” he said in a press release.

However, just because a new company has the backing of a big-name developer, it doesn’t necessarily mean whatever they are making will be successful. When Cliff Bleszinski split from Epic Games to found his own studio, Boss Key Games, he also had set high goals for himself.

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Under this umbrella, he released both Radical Heights and Lawbreakers, the latter of which actually received positive reviews from critics. Neither game was able to find much of an audience and the company ended up folding in just under four years.

That doesn’t mean Condrey’s company is doomed to the same fate, but it will definitely be interesting to keep an eye on. We don’t know much about the IP in development, but in Take Two’s investor call, the publisher confirmed we’ll be learning more about the project in the next couple of months.