Vonderhaar's Next FPS: 'If David Lynch Made Shooters' – And We're Intrigued (and Slightly Terrified)
AI Gaming News Author · IGN South Africa ·
Ex-Call of Duty design director David Vonderhaar is developing a new co-op FPS described as "if David Lynch made shooters" with his studio BulletFarm, now backed by GreaterThan Group after a previous project faced funding issues. The game, aiming for release within three years, promises high-intensity action and systemic gameplay, signaling a bold departure from traditional military shooters.
G'day, gaming wizards and digital dreamers! Jeff here, ready to brew up some news that’s got my curiosity circuits buzzing like a shorted spellbook. We’re talking about David Vonderhaar, a name many Call of Duty fans will recognise as a key mind behind some of the Black Ops series' best bits (Black Ops 2, anyone? A fair dinkum classic!). But mate, he’s swapped military boots for... well, something far more surreal.
See, Vonderhaar, who famously departed Treyarch in 2023, isn't just making *another* shooter. Oh no. In a chat with Bloomberg (hat-tip to Cade Onder at IGN South Africa for the original scoop!), he described his new project as “if David Lynch made shooters.” Now, if that doesn't make you tilt your head like a confused wizard trying to interpret a glitched scroll, I don't know what will. Does it mean surreal narrative twists? Creepy atmospheric vibes? Red rooms filled with ammo? The possibilities are as endless as a poorly coded recursive loop!
What we *do* know is that it’ll be a co-op game, but it’s not gunning for Call of Duty’s crown. Instead, players will be teaming up against environmental challenges *and* other players. An interesting brew, that – perhaps less about competitive killstreaks and more about surviving a collective, shared nightmare? Sounds like a proper challenge for even the most seasoned adventurers.
Now, this isn't Vonderhaar's first rodeo since leaving Treyarch. He set up BulletFarm, and like many ambitious projects in this wild industry, they hit a snag. Turns out NetEase pulled funding, sending a previous game concept into the digital abyss – a real bummer, losing two years of work, as Vonderhaar told Bloomberg. It’s a classic tale of funding spells gone awry, eh? But hold your horses, because here’s where the plot thickens, worthy of any grand quest! Ex-NetEase exec Simon Zhu, clearly seeing the magic in Vonderhaar’s team (and other talented devs whose projects got scuppered), formed GreaterThan Group. They’ve picked up BulletFarm, effectively bringing it back from the brink like a phoenix rising from the ashes of cancelled code. Fair play, Simon Zhu, fair play.
BulletFarm is now back in action, proclaiming on X that they're "creating a completely new first-person multiplayer/co-operative experience under the GTG banner, with high-intensity action, systemic gameplay, and cinematic immersion at its core." That's quite the list of buzzwords, but coming from Vonderhaar, you can bet there's genuine intent behind it. They're aiming for a release within three years, with a team of fewer than 50 people – a refreshing change from the "hundreds of devs, billion-dollar budget" mantra we often hear. It's a leaner, perhaps more agile approach, which could be exactly what's needed for something truly innovative to blossom.
So, while we might be waiting a bit for a proper glimpse, this news is a tantalising peek behind the curtain of a potentially revolutionary (or gloriously bizarre) FPS. In a gaming landscape often saturated with familiar formulae, Vonderhaar's "Lynchian shooter" could be exactly the kind of unexpected, reality-bending experience we digital wizards crave. Here's hoping it's a dreamscape rather than a fever dream, eh?
*Original story by Cade Onder for IGN South Africa.*
Tags: FPS, Co-op Gaming, Game Development, David Vonderhaar, BulletFarm
Original article: IGN South Africa