333Studios Interview: Pau Moreno on Retrieval and the Future of Gaming

In an exclusive interview with Safe Creative, Pau Moreno, co-founder and lead developer at 333Studios, discusses the studio's vision, the development of Retrieval, and the challenges facing the gaming industry. This interview provides unique insights into one of Spain's most promising game development studios.

Watch the full interview with Pau Moreno on Vimeo

Cinematic Gaming Experience

"At 333Studios, particularly with Retrieval, we're trying to bring a cinematic quality to games," explains Moreno. "We see many games that are heavily gamified, but our intention is to make players feel like they're experiencing a movie while playing. That's why we focus on graphical quality and ensuring players experience something more immersive than just a game."

Development Timeline

When asked about the development process, Moreno reveals: "Retrieval began development in 2021, so we've been working on it for several years now. A normal development cycle? Usually about four or five years for a substantial game. For more limited games, we might be talking about one or two years. Video games are projects that take a long time to realize—whether it's a small project or a large one, it always takes time to complete them."

Sources of Inspiration

"If we go way back, clearly we had influences like The Lion King or great games like Bugastic. But what inspires us for the games we're making now? Films like Alien, games like The Last of Us or Dead Space. This is the mix we reference when trying to explain to someone what Retrieval is and what the essence of 333Studios is all about."

Focused Gameplay Experience

Discussing Retrieval's design philosophy, Moreno emphasizes: "With Retrieval, we want players to experience something like a film. We don't want them to enter that 'I'm getting bored with this game' mindset. We aim for very focused games. Retrieval is a game with about seven or eight hours of gameplay. We try to ensure that the player feels like they're in a movie. Yes, it's a horror and survival game, but at every moment, we want to avoid any situation where the player thinks of it as just a game. That's why they're constantly receiving new narrative elements and stories, progressing through a journey... we focus on making the player experience everything simultaneously with the game's protagonist."

Pushing Technical Boundaries

"We're very, very proud of how it's turning out," Moreno says with enthusiasm. "Everything we've been showing are development images. We've worked with Nvidia and PlayStation, and we're extremely happy with how it looks. Graphical ceiling? We always put amazing games like Hellblade or Alan Wake ahead of us. We draw a lot of inspiration from what they are, and we believe there's still much more potential to tap into. Especially now that the PlayStation 5 Pro has been released. We're absolutely certain that once we release the game, it will have much better graphical quality than it already has now."

Release Plans

Regarding Retrieval's launch, Moreno states: "The release of Retrieval is planned for early 2026, specifically Q1 2026. We've always maintained that this is our launch date for our partners and all the businesses we work with. But it's true that what we prioritize in our development is ensuring the game looks good and comes out as it should. We won't be a studio that makes the mistake of releasing a game too early or cutting short what should be its normal development time. We always try to make sure it comes out as good as possible."

Industry Challenges

Moreno doesn't shy away from discussing the difficulties facing game developers: "Right now we're going through a difficult time, you could say. At 333Studios, we focus a lot on outsourcing, CGI, and trailers. We don't focus primarily on Spain, but have various international clients and partners like Path Games and other studios. We're at a point where there's little institutional support for the industry, and we're going through a tough time. There are publishers not making investments due to fear and other situations. Just a few weeks ago, the creators of Song of Nunu, who are Spanish and had been working for 15 years, had to close their studio and declare bankruptcy."

Artificial Intelligence in Game Development

On the topic of AI, Moreno takes a practical stance: "Artificial intelligence doesn't represent any problem for us. It's just another tool. We don't fear it taking our jobs. Does it facilitate parts of the process? Yes, but we'll always need a programmer, for example, to solve problems. AI tools facilitate the process, they help us move faster."

"If we don't have someone at that moment who can draw what we have in mind, we have artificial intelligence that can provide us with that drawing, even if it's not definitive, not perfect, and not exactly what we have in our heads. That allows us to continue working until that person who's really going to make the drawing arrives and creates something that's truly good. The same happens with programming. Can it program a text file of code for you? Absolutely. Will it program it exactly as you want and well? No."

Copyright and Piracy

Concluding the interview, Moreno addresses intellectual property concerns: "Piracy in the video game world will always exist. It's been there from minute one. We're more in favor of, instead of going against it, focusing on the regular player to give them a good experience. Piracy will always be there; we can't deny it because that's just how it is. That's why we always register our video game brands and the studio brand, clearly."

This interview was originally conducted in Spanish by Safe Creative on February 7, 2025.