Studio will continue to support remote working, but says physical location will "support the lifestyle of our team" along with requirements of co-development partners

Expression Games, the hitherto entirely remote developer behind Hell Let Loose Vietnam and co-developer on Star Wars Galactic Racer, has announced the opening of a physical studio in Manchester, in response to what CEO Errol Ismail described as the requirements of both its staff and its co-development clients.

Hell Let Loose: Vietnam has sold a million units since its release in August, the firm said, and Ismail confirmed it had also spent two years on co-development work with Fuse Games on Star Wars Galactic Racer. Expression launched in 2022 following the departure of Ismail and other key figures from Fabrik after it was acquired by Liverpool-based Playstation subsidiary Firesprite, and has been a regular winner at the GamesIndustry.biz Best Places To Work Awards since its inception.

"A physical space was always part of our long-term growth plans," Ismail tells GamesIndustry.biz, although not at the expense of denying remote work. "The decision to be fully remote predated Expression, it was when I was the studio director of Fabrik. We saw an opportunity to recruit talent all across the UK."

That was nevertheless paired with the goal of opening a physical office – interrupted by what Ismail describes as the "industry crash at the end of 2023" – to be "a creative hub for our team, a place for them to meet, to be creative, to collaborate.

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