Rumor: Halo Wars Dev Ensemble Shutting Down

mohib-uddin7986532 - 468 days 20 hours ago

Their losing all there studios as well as companies that favoured them like a 2nd party

They lost: Bioware, Pandemic, Team Ninja, Bizzare Creations e.t.c

companies like EA and Activison and THQ are all buying them !
Jump Out, the MICRSOFT ship looks like its sinking! ! !

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NO_PUDding - 468 days 20 hours ago

Serious!?

First Party is being decimated.

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Chexd - 468 days 19 hours ago

well if it does...does that mean there will be no support for Halo Wars?

Patches? DLC? etc

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kazuma - 468 days 19 hours ago

microsoft has 7 first party studios
ACES Game Studio
Ensemble
Lionhead
Rare
Turn 10
Wingnut Interactive
Xbox Live Productions

They lost 6 of them
Bungie
Carbonated Games
Digital Anvil
Hired Gun
FASA Interactive
Indie Built

if ensemble really is canned, that's quite a loss

edit: yes, but it's still one less studio, one at a time. indie built was sold, bungie became independent, and the others were dissolved/closed. they're closing down studios, incorporating the staff into other ones they already have, but they're not creating new ones or buying others. they should go down that route imo.

edit @ killjoy: nope. bioware joined with pandemic but it's as if they were separated. then EA stepped up and bought them.

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Xi - 468 days 19 hours ago

that's sort of a misnomer.

Many of those studios, like fasa, weren't canned but only encorporated. Much of the staff from fasa studios joined the rare team, and MS still has controlling rights of those IP developed by them (including crimson skies, mech assaut, mech warrior, shadowrun). The same is possible to ensemble but that usually happens when a studio is under preforming.

either way, I do think it would be a loss. Ensemble has some pretty good name recognition.

But take this with a grain of salt. If this was going to happen there'd be a lot more rumors about it, and rumblings from much earlier. If people are already being fired I would've thought we would've heard something earlier.

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Killjoy3000 - 468 days 19 hours ago

Didn't they used to have Bioware? I may be wrong, I'm just wondering.

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Dr Pepper - 468 days 19 hours ago

@ Killjoy3000

No they did not.

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Killjoy3000 - 468 days 19 hours ago

Ok, thanks.

And I'm guessing you Know what I'm going to give you...

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fermcr11 - 468 days 19 hours ago

I don't believe it ... they sell a lot of age of empires on the PC, and they are finishing Halo Wars for X360, witch, probably will sell a lot too.

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dle - 468 days 13 hours ago

Microsoft certainly realize that closing down major brand studios like Ensemble would not resonate well with the public. They must have another strategy in place to combat the negative publicity. Perhaps they believe supporting new independent studios that had close tie with the in the past would bring much better quality titles to their platform? Some one have a clue on what Microsoft grand plan is?

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TOO PAWNED - 468 days 19 hours ago

This doesn't make much sense to be honest. It usually goes this way when there are situations like this one mentioned in article. Publisher and studio wait for game to be released to see how it performs and if it flops and doesn't turn profit, than studio is closed. Example FASA studio with SHADOWRUN. Successful example is Incognito. Do you remember how many rumors and articles there were around web about Incog. shutting down? Time period when David Jaffy left Sony to start Eat Sleep Play studio and taking with him half of the staff from Incog.? But Sony waited gave studio chance to deliver with Warhawk and they did it. Warhawk is nmajor financial success and thanks to that guy(cant remember his name) that is now head of Incognito they have fully recovered and are working on new IP as it was confirmed.
It doesn't make sense to close down studio before seeing how game will perform. If it turns profit why shut it down?
My guess is that they are only changing size of this studio, meaning they are cutting on personal to reduce cost.

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Cerbus - 468 days 19 hours ago

So you've played Halo Wars? You must have if your saying it's one of MS best games. Lets wait till it's out to decide if it's good.

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mohib-uddin7986532 - 468 days 19 hours ago

on this website even the mods are fanboys

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cmrbe - 468 days 19 hours ago

I doubt this is true though.

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Killjoy3000 - 468 days 19 hours ago

And Rare..Who is...Not really Rare anymore.

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cmrbe - 468 days 19 hours ago

Ages franchise are some of the best RTS i have played. No worries though. I am sure this is not true.

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Lumbo - 468 days 19 hours ago

There has not been a new Age of Empires for ... ages .. oh the irony :(((((((

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cmrbe - 468 days 19 hours ago

i still play 2. Same with Starcaft. These two games never get old for me.

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Panthers - 468 days 19 hours ago

you dont know how wrong you are.

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SRuN4 - 468 days 19 hours ago

AoE has sold over 20 million units as a franchise. So to say "nobody will miss them" is a foolish thing to say.

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ngg12345 - 468 days 19 hours ago

Age of Mythology, and Age of Empires 2. On a second note, Ignored. YOu are so wrong. That it makes me angry.

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kazuma - 468 days 19 hours ago

hell yeah, world war and space wars would be awesome. i just grabbed the pic on the internet very quickly, doesn't he look kinda like master chief? XD oh the coincidence =D

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Lucreto - 468 days 18 hours ago

Yes I have that book with the same image. I was expecting what the hell are you talking about questions.

Anyway bubbles for the visual proof.

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heyheyhey - 468 days 20 hours ago

yeah, it's because they do that i actually have a Microsoft published game (AOM)

oh yeah and if this is true then the 360 is so fvcked it's not even funny

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Shadow Man - 468 days 20 hours ago

EAT D!CK OLD MAN!

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ThatCanadianguy420 - 468 days 20 hours ago

Ah..you can really feel the love in here..

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PoSTedUP - 468 days 20 hours ago

http://www.youtube.com/watc... <--- ?

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Hububla - 468 days 20 hours ago

hahaha bubbles up bro
very well done

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GiantEnemyCrab - 468 days 19 hours ago

Oh look Jerkstore is acting like Mr. toughguy over the fvckin internet. You would get your fvckin neck broke if you talked like that to my face you little b!tch.

Now I'm going back to service your mom for the 10th time this month since we know how all that imbreeding in the family has left your daddy d!ckless.. Like father like adopted son or should I say adopted little b1tch..

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mohib-uddin7986532 - 468 days 19 hours ago

ShadowMan/ CloudMan you Suck

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YoshiMeetsU - 468 days 19 hours ago

You know this jerkstore is just some little fat nerd kid who sits in his room all night after spending the school day being picked on. I mean who goes off like that on someone unprovoked over the internet? The very definition of a puss.

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NO_PUDding - 468 days 19 hours ago

GiantEnemyCrab you also talk like a 'b1tch', seems a bit hypocrtiical.

You wouldn't break my neck or his, if I/he spoke to you like that. We all know that. Just calm down. I know he doesn't seem that clever but trheats are another thing.

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GiantEnemyCrab - 468 days 19 hours ago

No_PUD: Fvck you 2! Your just another Sony c0ckbobber taking sides with your fellow Sony jerk-off. You can bet on it you would get your ass kicked if you talked like that to me. Despite what you think you know and that is no threat..

Look at my original post and look at that reply and you are going to go on my case about it? Are you for real?

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Dyingduck - 468 days 19 hours ago

Those attached to Halo Wars have been offered incentives to stay on the project until completion.

I wonder what kind of incentives...LMAO - no one cares about Gaylo!@!Q@#!

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KBDuB - 468 days 18 hours ago

"LMAO - no one cares about Gaylo!@!Q@#!" Apparently you do. You're in every singe fcking article that has even the slightest thing to do with Halo.

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Stickguy259 - 468 days 17 hours ago

I agree with KBDuB

And second off, why do you only have two bubbles DyingDuck? My guess is it's because you don't ever have anything meaningful to contribute to any conversation ever.

Jerk store's an a$$, and so is Hububla for agreeing with him.

GiantEnemyCrab may have overdone it, but Jerk store is an a$$, so I can understand.

About the news though, I like Ensemble studios for their Age of Empires games, and was kind of looking forward to Halo Wars. It'll suck if this rumor is true, but I don't think it'll be as big of a blow to Microsoft as heyheyhey would like to have us believe. I mean, Halo Wars would still be released, and that doesn't mean another company couldn't take up the reigns of top RTS maker, and DLC creator for Halo Wars.

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Hububla - 468 days 18 hours ago

Sony lets their developers do whatever they want whenever they want without hampering the creativity... while micros studios eventually get fed up being told what to do and how to make their games so they split! just let the developers develop microsoft STOP thinking about the MONEY and START thinking about the GAMERS!!

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