Tameem Antoniades, one of the founders of Ninja Theory and the game director of both Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice and Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II has left the studio.

During a recent visit to the UK-based studio for a Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II preview, Polygon noted that Antoniades, who was formerly the company’s chief creative director, is absent from the studio.

It was later confirmed by an Xbox spokesperson to Polygon that Antoniades has left the studio.

“Xbox spokesperson later confirmed to Polygon that he is no longer with the studio”, as written in the Polygon preview.

As of writing, Xbox, Ninja Theory, and Antoniades himself have not publicly stated the reason for the departure.

Antoniades was one of the founders of the studio and had worked on numerous games at Ninja Theory, more notably serving as director and writer for both Hellblade titles, as well as Heavenly Sword, DmC: Devil May Cry, and Enslaved: Odyssey to the West.

The Polygon preview also noted that Antoniades was involved in the early stages of Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II’s development, but the game is now led by the creative leads of environment art director Dan Attwell, visual effects director Mark Slater-Turnstill, and audio director David Garcia.

The studio recently announced the official release date for Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II five years after its initial reveal, slated for May 21, 2024, on Xbox Series X|S and PC, digital-only.