The UK games industry weeps once more, as I have the sad news of reporting rumors that another UK studio — this time Bizarre Creations — is allegedly facing closure.
Bizarre Creations in Liverpool houses 200 employees and was purchased by Activision in 2007. Since then it has made games such asBlurand most recently, James Bond 007 – Blood Stone. The rumor mill surrounding the axing grew to fever pitch onTwitterthis afternoon as Traveller’s Tales boss Jon Burton took to the social network to say “[This is a] sad Day for games developers. Really glad I didn’t sell my company to Activision.”
Activision has comment on the rumors, releasing the following statement toShacknews: “Over the past three years since our purchase of Bizarre Creations, the fundamentals of the racing genre have changed significantly. Although we made a substantial investment in creating a new IP,Blur, it did not find a commercial audience. Bizarre is a very talented team of developers, however, because of the broader economic factors impacting the market, we are exploring our options regarding the future of the studio, including a potential sale of the business”.
While the future of the company now hangs in the balance, all I can do is sincerely hope that there is light at the end of the tunnel for the folks at Bizarre Creations.
Word has also come through that the Iowa-based Budcat Creations — which handled multiple PlayStation 3 and Wii ports for Activision — has also been closed down. Our sources are indicating that the studio was informed of the layoffs today, but had been expecting them for a few months.
Activision terminates Bizarre Creations?[CVG]Activision Reportedly Closes Bizarre and Budcat Studios[Shacknews]
