Trying to please the widest possible audience can backfire.
At the Game Developers Conference 2026, LightSpeed Studios, part of Tencent, announced the launch of a new initiative to create original intellectual property. The company intends to focus on developing its own universes, drawing on the experience of leading industry experts, including creative director Feng Zhu and motion capture studio manager Christine Gallagher.
The studio, previously known primarily for mobile projects such as PUBG Mobile and Final Fantasy XIV Mobile, is now actively expanding its portfolio of AAA development. Current projects include Last Sentinel, as well as a new action game led by Hideaki Itsuno, known for the Dragon's Dogma and Devil May Cry series.
As part of GDC, the studio also presented its own approach to development, partially inspired by Hollywood production processes. According to Feng Zhu, the key difference between games and cinema is interactivity: if a film offers the viewer a pre-determined experience, then in games the user himself forms his own passage. This makes gameplay the central element of development, while in cinema the director's vision dominates.
One of the studio's principles is the so-called "90 to 10" formula: about 80–90% of the content should be based on reality, and the rest on creative interpretation. This approach, according to Zhu, helps to control deadlines and budget, and also makes projects more understandable and convincing for players.
At the same time, the developer emphasizes that the desire to please the widest possible audience can backfire. "Designing for 100 million people often pleases no one", he noted. Instead, LightSpeed is betting on creating strong stories and characters that can evoke a genuine response from at least part of the audience, which in the future may lead to wider success.
