2K Games has announced the formation of Small Axe Studios, a new developer that it says will be focused on building a new “blockbuster” sports franchise. While the publisher–which is owned by Take-Two Interactive–has commented which sport will be joining its other franchises, it looks like 2K might be taking on EA’s annual soccer series, EA Sports FC.
Currently, Small Axe Studios includes several former EA developers, with Aaron McHardy as studio head. McHardy had previously been in charge of EA’s FIFA franchise for 15 years, and other notable names include Gary Peterson as Small Axe’s head of design, Tom Pan as head of operations, technical art director John Cruz, and engineering lead Mike Thompson–all EA veterans.
Another clue that 2K Games will be making its own soccer game is the Small Axe logo, which resembles a soccer club badge on a shirt. While EA has dominated the soccer genre on console and PC–forging its own path forward after it split with FIFA in 2023 and transitioned to EA Sports FC. There hasn’t been a new AAA FIFA game since then, but the international soccer body has kept the brand active with mobile games and a World Cup game on Netflix.
Now is also a good time to strike while the proverbial iron is hot, as following the recent FIFA World Cup, soccer got a huge visibility boost as record numbers of people tuned in to watch the tournament.
Small Axe Studios joins a roster of game studios at 2K that focus on specific sports and have proven to be very popular over the years. NBA 2K, PGA Tour 2K, and WWE 2K have all been big hits for Take-Two Interactive, drawing in revenue not just from launch sales but from various microtransactions as well. Both Take-Two Interactive and EA have been criticized for how aggressively they monetize their games, with fans accusing them of pushing pay-to-win mechanics.
