Skate 4 is in the works at a brand new EA studio, though it has some familiar leadership.
Today EA announced the formation of new studio Full Circle, which is "working on the next evolution of Skate, and set to deliver an experience that will embrace and build upon everything our community found special about the previous games". The Vancouver-based studio is being led by former Xbox Live boss Daniel McCulloch, and it's also bringing back Deran Chung and Cuz Parry, two creative leads from the original Skate trilogy.
“The fans wished Skate back into existence and we want them involved in the process from development to game launch and beyond. We want them to feel like they are a part of Full Circle,” McCulloch said in a press release. “We’re all about having fun and making great games that people want to play with their friends. And, we’re looking for more developers to help us build compelling worlds for players to explore.”
While EA first announced the project over the summer, the large number of job openings on Full Circle's site indicates it's still very early days for development on the new Skate. To be fair, Chung and Parry did say that they have "a long way to go" when they first announced the new project over the summer - it looks like they're putting a new team together as EA Black Box, the primary developer of the original Skate games, was shut down back in 2013.
Between this and Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 1 + 2, it looks like skateboarding games may be due for a renaissance.
