Housemarque Co-Founder Ilari Kuittinen Steps Down After 31 Years, Hands Reins to Sami “Haxu” Hakala

Housemarque co-founder and long-time managing director Ilari Kuittinen has left the PlayStation-owned Finnish studio, marking the end of a 31-year run that began when he and Harri Tikkanen merged Terramarque and Bloodhouse in 1995.

In a farewell statement published on Housemarque's official channels today, Kuittinen said that "after 33 years in the games industry and 31 incredible years at Housemarque, today marks my last day as a Housemarquean." The post goes on to thank Sony Interactive Entertainment, the wider games community and "every single team member who has ever walked through Housemarque's doors."

The transition has been in motion for months. Former deputy managing director Sami "Haxu" Hakala officially stepped into the managing director role on July 1, with Kuittinen staying on through the end of August to "ensure complete operational continuity and stability." Housemarque's strategy and creative vision, Kuittinen wrote, are "in exceptional hands."

Kuittinen plans to take a break from the games industry starting in September, but says he is not done with games entirely. He intends to attend trade shows and award shows, cheer on his peers from the crowd, and "down the road, doing some mentoring or consulting."

Housemarque is the oldest active game studio in Finland. Under Kuittinen's leadership it shipped Supreme Snowboarding, Super Stardust HD, Resogun, Returnal and, most recently, Saros, the sci-fi follow-up to Returnal that launched on PS5 and PS5 Pro on April 30. Sony acquired the studio in 2021, with the PlayStation Studio family's 3D audio and DualSense engineering teams contributing to Saros' haptic and Tempest 3D AudioTech work.

Kuittinen's exit is the latest in a string of long-time PlayStation Studios leaders stepping back from day-to-day work. Insomniac Games co-founder Ted Price left in January 2025 and Sucker Punch co-founder Brian Fleming did the same in December 2025, both after multi-decade runs at the helm of their studios.

Read Kuittinen's full statement on the Housemarque X account and learn more about the studio's current flagship title via the Saros PS5 and PS5 Pro features post on PlayStation Blog.