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OXCGN's Tribute - A Decade Of Dead Game Studios Remembered

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OXCGN:

"Game studios have it hard at the moment. With the global recession starting to hit the industry, if your studio isn't working on a proven franchise there's no guarantee your game will ever see the light of day. Hell, there's no guarantee your studio will survive the development cycle and may just sink into bankruptcy oblivion.

Here's a look at some of the most loved studios that went bust this decade after the jump."
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oxcgn.com
gaminoz - contributor
Published: 209 days 15 hours ago | Article | Gaming
 
 

Showing: 1 - 21 of 21 Comments
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Beth3o - 209 days 15 hours ago
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1 -
so many closures, so sad, great artcle tho
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FarEastOrient - 209 days 13 hours ago
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1.1 -
One of my favorite studios is Working Designs...
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gaminoz - 209 days 15 hours ago
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2 -
I soooo hope Thief is being made for consoles like is rumoured. Thief for Xbox is still one of my top games of all time, along with Goldeneye and Resident Evil 4.

I liked Brute Force too, actually. Some of those studios had some pretty quality titles.
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Immortal Kaim - 209 days 15 hours ago
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3 -
The Ensemble closure is one of the worst decisions made by Microsoft. After the awesome RTS that was Halo Wars, it's clear these guys are talented. Though I guess most of them moved onto that new studio?
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Superfragilistic - 209 days 14 hours ago
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3.1 - How is it a bad decision?
Microsoft saves money on funding all the expensive infrastructure of an internal developer only producing 1 game per 5 years, Ensemble gets the creative freedom to explore new genres by splitting into three new studios, and Microsoft retains publishing rights with all of them.

That's a pretty damn smart deal to me! lol

They just turned one studio into three and outsourced all the costs while retaining the publishing rights (ie. exclusivity). Just like they did with Bungie.
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green - 209 days 14 hours ago
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3.2 - Immortal Kaim
I felt the same way when it 1st was announced but the thing is that few gamers actually know about Bonfire and Robot Studios rising from the ashes of Ensemble studios that Microsoft also helped fund.

"Though Robot did not provide any details on its original IP under development, the studio says it is working with Microsoft Game Studios to create additional Halo Wars content and "support online gaming and community for both Age of Empires and Halo Wars." http://www.gamasutra.com/ph...

As for Bonfire studios, they are also working on a new IP but they have no publishing relationship with Microsoft but are open to it.
"We haven’t announced a publishing partner yet for our new game, but we’d certainly be open to working with Microsoft in the future. Despite the fact that they closed Ensemble, we enjoyed working with Microsoft over the years and we made some great games together." http://thkgamereview.blogsp...

So at the end i think it is a better deal for gamers.
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Immortal Kaim - 209 days 14 hours ago
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3.3 -
Thanks for the info guys, I guess it isn't all bad, it was only a name right? All the creative people have populated those three other studios so I suppose that is better than one :)

Cheers
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DoctorQ - 209 days 15 hours ago
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4 -
could you imagine a future where all game companies have shut......
AAAAAAAH!!!!!!!
whoa, sorry,
cool stuff yv written
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XboxOZ360 - 209 days 15 hours ago
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5 -
I hatethefact that so many studioe shave closed, with many more likely to in the near future.

I think those that have been "acquired" by larger well known studios or publishing companies will do well, thank god. And the thought of those majors squashing the smaller sites creativity is ill-informed.

EA are doing a much better job now that they did do before, especially now that the ex CEO of Bioware (John Riccitiello,) is running the show.
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REALgamer - 209 days 15 hours ago
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6 - I miss Ion Storm. =(
Against most people's opinion, I thought Deus Ex: Invisible War was an excellent game and really engrossing. In some ways it reminds me of Mass Effect.

Also a shame about Digital Anvil - Brute Force had a lot of potential that could have been expanded upon in sequels, but I guess Gears of War has filled the third-person shooter co-op gap in Microsoft's plans.

I find it kind of funny to see the studio using Acclaim's logo and name and the games they're making. Ponystars. *throws up in mouth a bit*
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DoctorQ - 209 days 15 hours ago
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7 - omg
i love freelance and Deus ex (2 as well) i didnt know ion storm AND Anvil were closed!!
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REALgamer - 209 days 14 hours ago
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7.1 - Exactly!
It's only recently the closure of studios has been going public.

Last generation so many just disappeared without a trace. The way you knew about it was when you went to their website to see if they were making a sequel to a game you liked and found a goodbye message to their fans!

Or, in Oddworld Inhabitants case, a 'website being updated soon' message that's lasted there for 3 years it seems.
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GrathiusXR - 209 days 14 hours ago
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8 - R.I.P FASA...
I would LOVE some DLC for ShadowRun i hold as the yes THE BEST!!! Multiplayer game on the 360..

It was a great blend of teamwork, magical powers and weapons...
16 Players and still has an Australian Dedicated Community playing it..

When i had held the Xbox Forum Game Night for it had a great turn out everyone enjoyed it and wanted to play it again the next night and then Sunday night..

Such a pity FASA closed down afterwards.. would of been great if they had released some form of DLC for the game...

Plus they had BOTS if you didn't want to play online which is another BONUS.. but the lack of any short campaign/storyline hindered the game since there are many that love a single player experience..
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Sorla13 - 209 days 14 hours ago
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8.1 - what about....
Freelancer on the 360, that could be so cool....
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iDystopia - 209 days 14 hours ago
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8.2 -
Shadowrun is a really fun game IMO.

Smartlink ftw.
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Sorla13 - 209 days 14 hours ago
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9 - after this post...
im going to dust off Freelancer, i love that game, but at least they're still crankin out updates to it!
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iDystopia - 209 days 14 hours ago
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10 -
They closed but they still formed Robot studios and have said they will be supporting Halo Wars with DLC. =)
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thezuur - 209 days 14 hours ago
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11 - good read
thanx.
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darkmurder - 209 days 14 hours ago
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12 -
Black Isle! :'(
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STK026 - 209 days 13 hours ago
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13 -
no mention about WestWood Studios? :(
O-kay, I know some of the staff are still working at EA, but still, WW is still technically dead.
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Godem - 209 days 13 hours ago
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14 -
Wow awesome article idea! Good work!
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