It used to be the case that selling your studio to a multi-national publisher was a great way to secure the future of your company. Massive financial resources would be available to a develop to create those great games you had always wanted to make, which would in-turn get major marketing support as the publisher owned the studio and the brand and thus stood to benefit fully from its success.
Unfortunately it seems that publishers are no longer a safe harbour due to the economic tornado that is sweeping the world. Gone are the days when a cash strapped publisher would cancel a few 3rd party games to reduce outgoings and shore up their cash-flow. Today’s multi-national publishers are listed companies with major shareholders to keep sweet and the only way to do that is via sweeping cost reductions. A few project cancellations are no longer enough – now they are required to shed staff in their thousands and close/sell off their own studios in order to reassure their shareholders that strong action is being take to cut costs. THQ have just announced that several studios will be offloaded.
Quote from Develop online article Another studio shake-down at THQ.
“Big Huge Games is the studio that might potentially get the chop, unless a buyer is found, while Heavy Iron and Incinerator are to be turned into independents.”
At least the studios in question haven’t been locked and the staff given their marching orders. But it does take serious planning, considerable finance and a hat full of luck to succeed when an entire studio finds themselves suddenly independent.
Other recent example include Microsoft’s closure of Ensemble Studios (Gamasutra: – Ensemble Studios To Close) and Aces Game Studio (GI.biz: – Microsoft closes Aces Game Studio). However, despite the difficulties caused to staff by sudden redundancies there is a small hint of a silver lining that goes along with the storm, which is the birth of new studios springing up after the storm has passed. Three new studios have been born from the remnants of Ensemble Studios – Robot Entertainment, Windstorm Studios and Bonfire Studios. Hopefully they will all be successful enough to grow and flourish until they become a suitable acquisitions target for a big publisher.
