Update April 5th 7:38AM: A Microsoft spokesperson has confirmed to us that Tameem Antoniades is no longer with Ninja Theory.
The spokesperson told us that Antoniades "was involved in the early stages of development" on Senua's Saga: Hellblade 2, and that he departed Ninja Theory "after a period of transition". A reason for his departure was not given.
Original story follows below.
Original story: Ninja Theory co-founder and Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice director Tameem Antoniades has apparently left the studio with very little fanfare.
According to a Polygon preview of the upcoming Senua's Saga: Hellblade 2, an Xbox spokesperson confirmed that Antoniades "is no longer with the studio" (that's Polygon's Oli Welsh I'm quoting, not the spokesperson).
Welsh says that Antoniades was involved in Senua's Saga: Hellblade 2 during its early stages of development, but that the game now has "a trio of creative leads" in technical staffers Dan Attwell, Mark Slater-Tunstill, and David Garcia.
Antoniades' departure comes as something of a surprise given that no official announcement was apparently made on either his part or Ninja Theory's part.
A quick glance at Antoniades' Instagram page shows a post celebrating Hellblade 2's showing at 2023's Game Awards, where a new trailer for the game was presented and the band Heilung performed the song "Seidh", which will appear in the game.
In that post, Antoniades is still using "we" to refer to Ninja Theory, so his departure presumably came somewhere between December and now.
Given his level of involvement in the studio since its inception, it's somewhat puzzling that there's been no official comment on his apparent departure. He's also still listed as a "current director" on the Ninja Theory LinkedIn page.
Ninja Theory is currently gearing up to release its next game, Senua's Saga: Hellblade 2, which is arriving in May, as announced during January's Xbox showcase.
A direct followup to 2017's Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice, the game will once again follow Senua as she embarks on a "brutal journey of survival through the myth and torment of Viking Iceland".
