A Way Out heads to digital storefronts this March, and as he revealed that information at the Game Awards last week, Director Josef Fares made a few headlines of his own by criticizing his publishers at EA for their use of loot boxes. He even threw a hefty amount of shade at the Oscars in the process.
Fares recently spoke with Player.One to discuss that controversial moment, and as, you might expect, he feels the internet is mostly overreacting. He also talked glowingly about EA’s assistance in making A Way Out a reality through its EA Originals program.
“EA isn't making a single dollar on this game,” he said, “but they're still super, super supportive. Their whole Originals deal is solely about attracting interesting developers.”
Fares also refuted the notion that EA leadership doesn’t have the creator’s best interest at heart. Having spent considerable time with company elites, he wants gamers to know “these are normal people that take a s--t and p--s like we do. It's not like they're evil guys sitting up in their tower,” he chuckled. “They're obviously a large company that does a lot, but with me it's been fine.”
Fares says EA has helped to cultivate that strong relationship by giving his team the creative freedom to experiment with the ambitious co-op adventure A Way Out has become. “They know they can't even change a color or whatever. That's not gonna happen,” he promised.
That same freedom spawned the speech Fares made last Thursday night. Since A Way Out began development, this passionate creator says he has been free to speak his mind. He’s so free from interference, in fact, that he made a point to clear up a few misconceptions that emerged in the aftermath of his Game Awards surprise.
“When I was at the Game Awards people thought I was on cocaine. I've never even seen cocaine! I don't even smoke weed! It's like what the f--k, this is who I am. I am that person. I get very excited and I get caught up in the moment. I just go with it. it's just how it is…
“The people who know me know how I am, so for them it's like 'oh there goes Josef again.' I don't plan things. I know some people thought this was all a PR campaign. It's not a PR campaign, nobody's planning this. I never write a script for what to say, I just go out and do it.
“You're hearing me now. Do you think this is a PR s--t? No. I literally don't care. But don't care doesn't mean I don't respect people. I do care about being a kind human being and being good to each other. I don't care if someone judges me for the person I am. The only thing you could say now is that I'm almost getting more attention than the game, and I want the game to be the focus.”
To those ends, we have a lot more exclusive details to share about the creative process and ambitions behind A Way Out in the coming days. One thing we can tell you today, however, is that it absolutely won’t have any loot boxes. In the words of Fares himself, “You will never ever have loot boxes and stuff in a game I do. That will never happen. Trust me on that.”
A Way Out comes to PS4, Xbox One and PC March 23. Stay tuned next week for more about the incredibly ambitious vision behind Fares’ indie co-op experience.
Do Fares’ words give you new perspective on EA and his unique personality? Will you be playing A Way Out on day one? Tell us in the comments section!
