For years, Embracer Group bought a bunch of studios and franchiseswhether in his name or through his publishing studio THQ Nordic. But in 2023, the Swedish giant does the accounts, they are not good, forcing him to lay off and close studios. The ax has obviously fallen for a new team, yet with a cult CV.
VGC received information from PLAIONwhich also belongs to Embracer Group. The latter would consider the closure of Free Radical Design. The studio has had an incredible life: founded in 1999, it has carved out a fine reputation with the excellent FPS TimeSplitters and the action-adventure game Second Sightalthough players also remember the very mediocre Haze (and Star Wars: Battlefront III canceled). Purchased by Crytekhe participated in the development of Crysis and of Warframebefore being dissolved, its franchises being sold to Koch Media (now PLAION and now belonging to Embracer Group).
However, in 2021, Koch Media announced that he had reformed Free Radical Design to develop a new game TimeSplitters, fans were looking forward to it. A project that will probably never see the light of day, the studio could in fact close in a few daysas stated by Lars Jannsen, Vice President worldwide studios & talent at the house of PLAION :
As we move forward with the consultation process and face the potential closure of Free Radical Design on December 11, 2023, I would like to express my gratitude for your commitment and the remarkable work you have done and continue to do.
This is a difficult time for all of us, but especially for you, and our goal is to support you as much as possible during this transition.
Nothing has been decided at the moment, but it clearly doesn’t smell good for Free Radical Design, Embracer Group having already laid off more than 900 employees in recent months. Legally, Embrace must consult its employees one month before dismissing them, but VGC indicates that, on LinkedInhalf of the studio’s developers are looking for a new jobother studios like Splash Damage even announced that they would organize job interviews with them. An early Christmas miracle can still occur, a publisher can very well buy Free Radical Design before its closure. You can find maps PSN on Amazon, Cdiscount And there Fnac.
Update : it’s done, Free Radical Design just closed its doors. The official website only displays the error message “404 Company Not Found :-(” and the developers leave final messages on social networks, such as X And LinkedIn. More than 80 people are thrown outwhile everyone was hoping for the big return of TimeSplitters. Let’s of course hope that everyone finds a place in the video game industry as quickly as possible.
| Clint008 Editor – Tester |
