Split Fiction Streamers Conquer Laser Hell, Earn Trip to Hazelight Studios

Split Fiction continues to captivate players with its innovative gameplay and hidden challenges. Recently, two Chinese streamers, sharkOvO and E1uM4y, made headlines by successfully completing the notoriously difficult "Laser Hell" secret stage. Their achievement not only showcases their skill but also earned them an exciting reward: a trip to Hazelight Studios.

First Players to Finish "Laser Hell" Challenge Earn a Trip to Hazelight Studios

Since its successful launch last month, Split Fiction has kept the gaming community on their toes with its unexpected surprises. The "Laser Hell" stage, hidden within the Isolation level, requires players to enter a specific sequence of switch presses on the elevator. Once inside, they face a platform stage filled with lasers, making it a formidable challenge.

sharkOvO and E1uM4y documented their triumph on BiliBili, revealing the grueling process of navigating through the laser-filled gauntlet. Upon completion, they were greeted with a video message from Hazelight Founder Josef Fares, who praised their accomplishment and extended an invitation to visit the studio in Sweden. Fares, impressed by their feat, confirmed the invitation on Twitter (X) on March 19, stating, "Congrats to 'sharkOvO' and 'E1uM4y' for finishing the secret challenge 'Laser Hell' in #splitficton. VERY impressive! I will keep my promise and invite you both to Sweden for an early look at our next game. We'll be in touch!"

Hazelight Studios Working On Its Next Game

In a recent interview with The Friends Per Second podcast on March 17, Josef Fares discussed Hazelight’s relationship with publisher EA and shared insights into the studio's future plans. Fares expressed that Split Fiction felt different from his previous projects, stating, "For me, personally, every time a game is out, I’m kind of done with it. I’m kind of like, ‘OK, here’s the next thing.’ This has been a bit extra special. I would say that it’s been the best-received game we have done, but to be honest, everybody is super happy, but I’m so fully-focused and excited on the next thing that we already have started."

While Fares remained tight-lipped about the specifics of the new project, he hinted at the studio's excitement and mentioned that they had begun working on it roughly a month ago. He also emphasized the studio's efficient development cycle, saying, "You do know, at Hazelight, we don’t work on [a] game more than three or four years. Three or four years is not so far away. Then we’re going to talk more about it."

Regarding their partnership with EA, Fares clarified, "Here’s the thing, people don’t understand this: EA is a supporter. We don’t pitch games to them. We say, ‘We’re going to do this.’ That’s it. They have zero, and I mean zero, thing to say about what we’re doing next." He stressed that EA respects Hazelight's creative autonomy, which has contributed to the studio becoming one of EA's most successful partners.

First Update and Hitting 2 Million Sales in 1 Week

On March 17, Split Fiction received its first major update, addressing various community-reported issues. The patch included fixes for in-game mechanics, minor online play glitches, localization, and subtitles across all languages, enhancing the overall gaming experience.

In addition to the update, Split Fiction achieved a remarkable milestone by selling over 2 million copies within its first week of release. This achievement surpasses the initial sales of Hazelight’s 2021 Game of the Year Award winner, It Takes Two, which sold 1 million copies shortly after its launch and reached 20 million by October 2024.

Split Fiction is now available on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC. To stay updated with the latest news and developments, be sure to check out our related articles below!