Mark Healey, the original creator of LittleBigPlanet, is now working on Peter Molyneux’s new strategy project Masters of Albion and he says today’s relaxing, feel-good games are painfully boring unless they come with a dose of brutal contrast.

Despite years of being labeled a classic overpromiser, Peter Molyneux is pitching Masters of Albion as the most important project of his career. Development kicked off with funding tied to an earlier, unsuccessful NFT venture, but the direction is firmly rooted in strategy and a god-game-style simulation. This time, Molyneux also has a notable reinforcement: Mark Healey, one of the key creatives behind LittleBigPlanet, has joined the team.

Healey, however, had surprisingly blunt words about the current wave of relaxing, feel-good games. Speaking to The Game Business about the genre’s pandemic-era rise and its continued momentum, he said he understands why it’s popular-and that it’s among the most successful genres on PC today. Personally, though, he finds it “incredibly boring” if it doesn’t include “a bit of extreme violence, to balance it out”. In his view, that mindset fits perfectly with the game he’s making right now: Masters of Albion.

Masters of Albion Is Calm by Day, Chaos by Night

According to Healey, the hook is the clash of two opposing moods: calm during daylight hours and chaotic once night falls. The concept has players building and managing their village in the daytime, then defending it against hordes of monsters at night. That contrast is what ultimately convinced Healey to sign on after leaving Media Molecule in 2023, with the goal of pushing the calm-versus-destruction duality as far as possible.

Molyneux, for his part, argues that the structure can work even for more relaxed players: you can spend as long as you like preparing for the nightly chaos, and in whatever way you prefer. That means even chill players can still enjoy the thrill of the night. The game is set to launch in early access on April 22, a release that will be closely watched as a real test of community sentiment-after years of skepticism around Molyneux driven by broken promises.

Source: 3DJuegos