A2M hails Bethesda after Activision fallout

Canada’s largest independent studio, Artificial Mind and Movement (A2M), has described its partnership with Bethesda as “nothing but joy”.

Bethesda recently emerged as the publishing partner for A2M’s acrobatic action title, Wet, a game once thought to have been shelved completely after complications emerging from the Activision-Blizzard merger.

As Activision-Blizzard formed last year, the publishing powerhouse announced a number of divestments to be made as it sought to cement its business plans.

Those divestments left Wet without a publisher, and after a long spell of silence, it was widely considered that the game was cancelled, before Bethesda jumped in to strike a publishing deal.

Wet’s creative director, Patrick Fortier, has since hailed the success of its partnership with Bethesda.

“[Bethesda] speak the same language as us,” Fortier told VG247. “They are developers too, they understand how things work on the floor, and they are consummate professionals, so it’s been nothing but joy collaborating with them.”

A2M was in the past fixated on developing licensed titles such as Monsters Inc, Ice Age and The Grinch. Yet according to Fortier, the studio is now leaning towards developing more original IP.

“That’s definitely something A2M is looking at,” he said, “so yes, that’s certainly a possibility.”