Julien Merceron assumes as CTO of Delphi Interactive

Delphi Interactive announced the hiring of Julien Merceron as its new Chief Technology Officer (CTO). With a 30-year career that includes stints at Konami, Bandai Namco, Square Enix, Ubisoft, and IO Interactive, Merceron is the mastermind behind the FOX Engine, the engine that powered the golden age of Metal Gear Solid V and Pro Evolution Soccer. His immediate mission will be to oversee the technical strategy of the new soccer simulation game from FIFA, which will be exclusively released by Netflix later this year.

The goal of Delphi Interactive is to operate with lean and senior teams, in an attempt to avoid the bureaucracy and slow decision-making that characterize the traditional model of major publishers. For the development of this new FIFA, the company has partnered with Refactor Games, a studio based in Los Angeles that includes veterans from EA Sports, 2K, Blizzard, and Riot Games. According to Merceron, the objective is to return to the gameplay principles that made classic football games memorable, focusing on fluidity and technical depth.

The news of Merceron's leadership is positive for those looking for an alternative to stagnant annual simulators. His experience in building engines that prioritize the "feel" of the game is a robust technical advantage. However, the decision to launch the title exclusively for Netflix subscribers is a point that generates criticism. Restricting a large-scale football simulator to a streaming platform could severely limit the audience reach and technical performance compared to native releases for the latest generation consoles.

The release schedule is set for the summer of the northern hemisphere, coinciding with the FIFA World Cup 2026. If Delphi Interactive can deliver a reimagined simulation from scratch that compensates for the distribution limitations of Netflix, we may have the first real threat to the established market dominance in recent years. Otherwise, it will be just another ambitious project limited by a niche business model.