Xbox veteran and Halo Infinite head of design Jerry Hook has unveiled his new “AAA” studio Jar of Sparks, a first-party developer for Chinese publisher NetEase that will focus on creating the “next generation of narrative-driven action games”.
Hook, who announced his departure from 343 Industries and Microsoft back in May, has a long and notable career in the games industry, having joined the Xbox Live team in 2003. He would later take on an executive producer role at Microsoft after a brief sojourn at Bungie, gaining credits on numerous 343-Industries-developed titles including Halo 4 and Halo 5: Guardians.
Hook’s new studio, Jar of Sparks, is based in Seattle and, according to NetEase’s press release announcing the formation of the company, already boasts a “team of industry veterans who have worked on some of the biggest franchises in video game history”.