Sony Bend Hiring For AAA Project That May Not Be Days Gone

Next February, Days Gone will release for PlayStation 4, marking Sony Bend's first release in roughly seven years, and its first IP since Syphon Filter. That said, one of the big questions currently looming around the studio is: what's next?

Some believe Days Gone will be the end of the road for the developer, particularly if it comes out to an underwhelming reception. But this is just speculation. If a closure isn't in the studio's near-future, then what will it work on next?

Presumably, if Days Gone is a hit, it will continue with a sequel. But early reports on the game's quality suggest this won't be the case. If not, then what does it work on? Does it go back to Syphon Filter? Does it oo some Uncharted offshoot like it has in the past? Take another stab at a new IP? Who knows.

However, a new job listing for the developer may just shed a tinsy bit of light on what the Oregon-based studio has cooking.

Said listing recently appeared on the developer's official website, and is for the role of Senior Concept Artist. The details of the position unfortunately don't provide a ton of details on what the team is working on, other than it confirms it's a AAA product.

You can check out the listing for yourself below:

"Sony Bend Studio, the creator of Days Gone, Syphon Filter and Uncharted: Golden Abyss, is looking for top talent to join our in passionate team.

"We are seeking a Senior Concept Artist who will contribute to the artistic vision and development of a AAA product."

Responsibilities:

• Create concept art that drives the artistic goals and vision through all phases of the game development cycle from pre-production through final product release. This entails creating concepts for all art assets including environments, characters, props, storyboards etc., while upholding the integrity of the games design, and the artistic vision of the game as a whole.

• Responsible for creating concept art that dictates the lighting and color palette throughout the game. This is integral to the entire game, and includes creating color keys for the environments, characters, and cinematics that match the emotional intention of the game design and story beats.

• Responsible for visual development of all game worlds and locations, working under the Lead Concept artist to conceptualize worlds and level locations. This also includes conceptualizing vistas or creating matte paintings throughout the game that provide opportunities to showcase the world outside of the gameplay areas, and demonstrate the full capabilities of the studio's rendering engine and current hardware platform.

• Maintain a good knowledge of the games design as a whole to facilitate communication and enable early identification of potential artistic issues.

• New IP visual explorations for future game titles, which includes developing multiple artistic styles and options to choose from during pre-production.

• Keeps aware of industry trends and techniques, evaluates competitive products, and determines areas to improve or innovate in to best the competition, communicates artistic innovations in a convincing way, and collaborates with the leadership team to develop plans for implementation.

• May provide input into the artistic goals and vision through all phases of the game development cycle from pre-production through final product release. This entails ensuring environment/level assets are of the highest artistic quality and uphold the integrity of the games design and artistic vision of the game as a whole.

• May also have a leadership role within the art team. This entails contributing to schedule management needs, providing guidance to support the diplomatic resolution of complex problems, providing input on team performance reviews, and facilitating career coaching.

As you can see, not much can be extracted from the details of the listing. However, there are a few tidbits worth noting. One, it doesn't make any mention of a new IP. While it isn't always the case, most job listings will make note of if said project is a brand-new IP. So, while a new IP is a possibility, it doesn't seem the most likely.

If it isn't a new IP, then it could very well be a return to Syphon Filter, though the lack of public demand for such a revival also puts this in the boat of unlikely. Could it be taking temproaily taking the reigns over an existing Sony IP, such as Killzone or Uncharted? Maybe.

The most likely case though is this is Days Gone DLC or some type of expansion. And while the open-world action-adventure game may get neither if it doesn't perform well that doesn't mean Sony Bend won't have some concept plans ready in the wings.

At the end of the day, all we can do is patiently wait to see what Sony Bend will do next. What this listing does confirm though is that while the developer is hard at work making Days Gone, it also has some other work brewing on the side.

Days Gone is poised to release on February 22nd via the PlayStation 4. For more on the game, click here.

Thanks, TNM.