Call of Duty: Black Ops veteran David Vonderhaar has announced a brand new studio venture under the auspices of NetEase Games.
BulletFarm is, according to an announcement post on its official website, a "new AAA global game studio" with headquarters in Los Angeles. It will, however, be a "remote-first" studio, so employees will likely hail from around the world.
The studio is currently hard at work on its debut title, which will be in first-person and will "craft a more intimate and relatable experience" while also placing an emphasis on co-op multiplayer gameplay.
Vonderhaar says that starting BulletFarm has allowed him to get out of his comfort zone and make something "entirely new and different".
According to Vonderhaar, his new project will be a departure from his usual fare, but will also feature "rich characters, precise mechanics, more intimate storytelling, and plenty of action".
Other staffers at BulletFarm include ex-Treyarch designer Chris Cowell, NetEase investment manager Rexroad Simons, and environment artist Eric Klokstad, whose work you might know from games like PowerSlave Exhumed and Predator: Hunting Grounds (as well as classic shooters like Quake and Duke Nukem 3D).
David Vonderhaar is far from the only developer to have thrown his lot in with NetEase after leaving a major studio.
He joins the likes of Mass Effect's Mac Walters, ex-Dragon Quest producer Ryutaro Ichimura, and ex-Ubisoft producer Sean Crooks, all of whom announced studios under the NetEase banner last year.
There's also Resident Evil producer Hiroyuki Kobayashi and Yakuza creator Toshihiro Nagoshi, both of whom set up studios alongside NetEase back in 2022.
It remains to be seen what Vonderhaar and BulletFarm will create, but Vonderhaar is excited about the "incredible support structure" and "true freedom" that NetEase has given him and his team. Stay tuned for more info on whatever Vonderhaar and BulletFarm cook up.
