Discover how Split Fiction streamers tackled the challenging Laser Hell secret stage, earning themselves an exclusive trip to Hazelight Studios. Delve into the details of this thrilling challenge and find out what's next for Hazelight Studios following the phenomenal success of Split Fiction.
Split Fiction Continues With More Surprises
First Players to Finish "Laser Hell" Challenge Earn a Trip to Hazelight Studios
Following its successful launch last month, Split Fiction continues to captivate players with new surprises, including the discovery of the secret "Laser Hell" stage. Despite its formidable difficulty, two streamers have conquered this challenge, securing a trip to Hazelight Studios as a reward from the game's director.
Chinese streamers sharkOvO and E1uM4y recently shared a video on BiliBili, showcasing their successful completion of the Laser Hell challenge. To unlock this stage, players must input a specific sequence on the elevator switches in the Isolation level, leading them to a laser-filled platform stage.
Upon completing the challenge, the duo unlocked a congratulatory video from Hazelight Founder Josef Fares. He commended their achievement, noting that even most of the development team struggled with the level, and extended an invitation to visit Hazelight Studios in Sweden. Fares later confirmed this on Twitter (X) on March 19, stating, "Congrats to 'sharkOvO' and 'E1uM4y' for finishing the secret challenge 'Laser Hell' in #splitfiction. 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 an interview with The Friends Per Second podcast on March 17, Josef Fares discussed Hazelight's relationship with publisher EA and hinted at the studio's next project.
Fares expressed that Split Fiction's release felt uniquely different from his previous games. "For me, personally, every time a game is out, I'm kind of done with it. I'm like, 'OK, here's the next thing.' This has been a bit extra special. It's been our best-received game, but I'm fully focused and excited about the next project, which we've already started working on."
Despite the excitement, Fares refrained from sharing details about the new project, stating, "There is a reason why I can't talk about the next game; it's because it's quite early. At Hazelight, we don't work on a game for more than three or four years. It's not so far away, but it's way too early to discuss. Just know that we are very, very, very excited here and started working on this about a month ago."
Addressing Hazelight's relationship with EA, Fares clarified, "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, say in what we're doing next." He emphasized that despite EA's mixed reputation, the publisher has been supportive of Hazelight, respecting their creative autonomy. "Maybe they're messing up with other developers. With us, no. They respect us and what we do. I'm very clear with them that they cannot interfere with what we do. Now, we have become one of their most successful studios."
First Update and Hitting 2 Million Sales in 1 Week
On March 17, Split Fiction received its first update, addressing several community-reported issues. The update fixed in-game mechanics that were not functioning correctly in certain scenarios, resolved minor glitches during online play, and improved localization and subtitles across all languages.
In addition to the update, Split Fiction achieved a significant milestone by selling over 2 million copies within just one week of its launch. This is a remarkable feat compared to Hazelight's previous game, It Takes Two, which sold 1 million copies a few weeks after its 2021 release and reached 20 million by October 2024.
Split Fiction is now available on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC. Stay updated with the latest news on the game by checking out our article below!
