After leaving Activision and Infinity Ward, Robert Bowling has self-funded his own development studio, Robotoki, with their first project to be announced this year.
When Robert Bowling revealed that he would be stepping down from his role as Creative Strategist at Infinity Ward and leaving Activision, the question that jumped immediately to gamers’ minds was what might be next. While the assumption was that Bowling wasn’t done with video game development, there were so many possibilities as to what type of situation he might land in.
Just today we have learned exactly what Bowling plans to do with his newly found free time, and that is to give it all up. Bowling plans to bankroll his assuredly lucrative Call of Duty salary into funding a new game development studio called Robotoki.
Talking with Game Informer, Bowling revealed that he plans to make Robotoki a ‘people first’ development studio that favors fostering talent over churning out product. Bowling feels that the industry, as it continues to grow, has become too business-focused and is “falling severely behind in how to properly inspire and support our creative talent.”
Through self-funding, Bowling wants to ensure that Robotoki retains creative control over the products it puts out, the complete opposite of the type of deals previous employer Activision worked out with its studios. There’s no firm word on what type of game Robotoki is working on at the moment, but it is believed to be getting an official announcement later this year and is headed to all major platforms including iOS and Android devices.
The immediate question to ask about the project is how closely it might resemble Call of Duty? According to Bowling this new project won’t closely resemble the juggernaut franchise, but will be a natural evolution of it.
“Our focus is creating an experience that is no longer strictly single player, strictly co-op, or strictly multiplayer, but adapting the strengths of each of these into a unique experience that is fueled by the actions and contributions in each.”
the second this project starts taking off that Bowling will be out there doing what he does best, and gamers will be made well aware of the unique features this project has to offer. And, if there are any game developers out there looking for a job Robotoki is hiring!
Are you intrigued by the prospect of Robert Bowling opening up his own studio? What type of game do you think Robotoki should be working on?