[GameSpot] - Troubled Gone Home Studio's Next Game Now Being Made Without Its Involvement

[343iBot]

Development of narrative game Open Roads is now continuing without the involvement of Fullbright, after the company's co-founder Steve Gaynor stepped down. The development team will be credited as "The Open Roads Team" at launch.

As reported by Polygon, Gaynor announced his full departure from the game's development in his newsletter on May 12. He said, "after a great deal of consideration, it's just no longer Fullbright's place to represent Open Roads publicly going forward."

In March 2021, Gaynor was removed from a leadership role on Open Roads after former employees, largely women, alleged hostile conduct and mismanagement. He would continue as a writer on the project, but would no longer have a leadership role or be involved in creative director-type decisions.

In August 2021, the Open Roads team disclosed Gaynor's changed role, just as Polygon released a report detailing the problems at the studio. In July 2022, Game Informer published a profile of the Open Roads team, which claimed Gaynor no longer had any involvement with development.

Open Roads is a narrative game, published by Annapurna, about 16-year-old Tess Devine on a road trip with her mother Opal. Both women will explore their relationship, family secrets, and a series of houses on the US/Canadian border in Michigan. The game will star Keri Russell and Kaitlyn Dever. As of yet, no release date or window has been revealed.

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