It sounds as though PlayStation’s Santa Monica Studio could potentially be working on a brand-new IP, if a since-edited “About” section on a staffer’s LinkedIn profile is any indication.
The profile, belonging to a Character Supervisor at the studio, describes having originally left Santa Monica Studios to help for Striking Distance Studios (the folks behind The Callisto Protocol), moving on to Unknown Worlds and finally returning to SMS to work on what was originally stated is a new IP.
“Santa Monica Studios presented the opportunity of coming back as character supervisor, looking after the entire Character Development pipeline, on their new IP, so here I am, thrilled to be back, working again with the crew and pushing characters in video games together,” the developer had written on their profile.
That all-important line has been changed since, to now read, “on their new unannounced project,” making the whole thing a little murkier. It very well could have been a mistake, or a panicked rewrite as the internet began to pick up on it, but until we hear directly from PlayStation/SMS we simply don’t now.
If it is true that the studio is working on an entirely new IP, it’ll be a change from around 20 years of God of War, being the only franchise that Santa Monica Studio has worked on in-house in all of that time. The team’s most recent title, God of War Ragnarok, launched back in 2022 to much critical acclaim, and a PC version set to arrive in September.
I gave God of War Ragnarok a huge 9.5/10 in my review at launch, saying, “God of War Ragnarok is a triumph. Santa Monica Studio has successfully taken everything that was great about the last game and amplified it while correcting just about every problem area and then some. There are slight stumbles, but it’s a constantly surprising, epic adventure that shows genuine growth in its characters, backed up by best-in-class combat and a menagerie of breathtaking scenes. This makes Ragnarök an easy GOTY contender and one of the best games I’ve played in years.”
