New indie, NEARstudios founded by ex Bethesda, Bioware and Naughty Dog devs

Developers that have worked on Skyrim, The Last Of Us and Dragon Age have formed a brand new games company, NEARStudios.

Led by Heather Cerlan and Jason Richardson, the Maryland-based studio has begun work on its first game, Hawthorn. A co-op sandbox RPG that combines element of village sims with the nostalgic adventure stories of the '80s and '90s, Hawthorn aims to double down on its developers' strong RPG heritage. The lead designer of Skyrim, Bruce Nesmith, will be lending his expertise to Hawthorn, coming out of retirement for the project.

Hawthorn Heights

The team at NEARStudios also features developers that have worked on franchises like Mass Effect, Ultima Online, League of Legends, and Fallout. Focused on making immersive co-op games that “bring people together”, NEARStudios is an outfit born during an era of closures and widespread layoffs. NEARstudios' states that it strongly believes in the power of indies, saying “that the future of gaming lies in the hands of smaller, dedicated studios willing to break new ground.”

“We're relishing the freedom to explore new creative possibilities and build a genuine relationship with our players,” said Cerlan. “This is our passion project, and we are putting everything we have into it. We have a strong vision, and we can’t wait to develop it alongside our community.”