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Factor 5 closes shop

ericdigital
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ericdigital polycounter lvl 13
I don't think these guys have made any thing new recently, but they did the rogue squadron series and god damn that was some of the best star wars gaming ever in my opinion(N64 the most though!) To bad to see another go =[

http://kotaku.com/5253800/factor-5-officially-shuttered

From the article:
We are sorry to announce the closure of the San Rafael-based Factor 5 Inc. studio, but the obstacles created by the sudden bankruptcy of Brash Entertainment for the continuation of operations have turned out too great to overcome in the current economic climate.

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  • [Deleted User]
    Every purveyor of my childhood happiness is dying.

    :(
  • NyneDown
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    NyneDown polycounter lvl 11
    Dude...2010 needs to hurry up and get here. So far, 2009 has been brutal!
  • PolyHertz
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    PolyHertz polycount lvl 666
    Even though their has been alot of talk about studios closing sense last year, does anyone know how many actually have closed down (not just layed off or gone into bankruptcy / administration)?

    These are the ones I know of:

    ( May, 09 ) 3D Realms
    ( May, 09 ) Factor 5
    ( Feb, 09 ) Pandemic Studios, Brisbane Australia
    ( Jan, 09 ) Eidos, Manchester
    ( Jan, 09 ) Nexon, Vancouver
    ( Nov, 08 ) Sandblast Games
    ( Nov, 08 ) Locomotive Games
    ( Nov, 08 ) Helix
    ( Nov, 08 ) Paradigm Entertainment
    ( Sep, 08 ) Ensemble Studios
    ( Aug, 08 ) Pivotal Games
    ( Aug, 08 ) Flagship Studios
    ( Feb, 08 ) Iron Lore

    on a side note, 09 looks like it'll end up being worse then 08 was at this rate :(

    edit: updated list
  • Marcus Dublin
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    Marcus Dublin polycounter lvl 17
    I bet things would have been different had Lair come out on both the 36o and the PS3. Having that game as a PS3 exclusive at that time seemed like a big mistake! New IP on a $600 dollar system with a low installed base seemed like suicide "cough" Heavenly Sword. Of course it seems the Brash Entertainment debacle didn't help matters either. This just sucks all around!

    My best wishes to all the talented folks who were let go.
  • Marcus Dublin
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    Marcus Dublin polycounter lvl 17
    Are you sure BHG closed down, I thought they were still looking for a buyer?
  • PolyHertz
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    PolyHertz polycount lvl 666
    Well they said that they'd look for a buyer for 60 days before closing down the studio, and its been about that much time without any word on a buyer. But I'm just assuming atp.
  • ericdigital
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    ericdigital polycounter lvl 13
    I think BHG is really on the fence, they are still really positive over there and from what I gather they are trying to push a Q4 release of a new rts, though no info has been announced on it. I had no idea about IronLore, thats really a bummer. Loved Titan Quest.
  • RickFX
    man i cant take anymore of this, everything closes down lately, its not only this industry...just think of pontiac...WHAT will the future bring? i see mega-companys taking over world domination just like in some scifi stories :/
  • leilei
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    leilei polycounter lvl 14
    a shame. I liked Turrican :(
  • Andreas
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    Andreas polycounter lvl 11
    I bet things would have been different had Lair come out on both the 36o and the PS3.

    I bet things would have been different had Lair been any good...
  • odium
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    odium polycounter lvl 18
    I bet things would have been different if Lair was actually a new Rogue Squadren game...
  • Target_Renegade
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    Target_Renegade polycounter lvl 11
    PolyHertz wrote: »
    Even though their has been alot of talk about studios closing sense last year, does anyone know how many actually have closed down (not just layed off or gone into bankruptcy / administration)?

    These are the ones I know of:

    ( May, 09 ) 3D Realms
    ( May, 09 ) Big Huge Games
    ( May, 09 ) Factor 5
    ( Mar, 09 ) Heavy Iron
    ( Mar, 09 ) Incinerator Studios
    ( Feb, 09 ) Pandemic Studios, Brisbane Australia
    ( Jan, 09 ) Eidos, Manchester
    ( Jan, 09 ) Nexon, Vancouver
    ( Nov, 08 ) Sandblast Games
    ( Nov, 08 ) Locomotive Games
    ( Nov, 08 ) Helix
    ( Nov, 08 ) Paradigm Entertainment
    ( Sep, 08 ) Ensemble Studios
    ( Aug, 08 ) Flagship Studios
    ( Feb, 08 ) Iron Lore

    on a side note, 09 looks like it'll end up being worse then 08 was at this rate :(

    Pivotal Games, Bath - Aug,08
  • Marcus Dublin
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    Marcus Dublin polycounter lvl 17
    I bet things would have been different had Lair been any good...

    Well what really hurt the game was it’s over ambitious control scheme. I wish someone of authority on the design team stopped an said, (hey wait, we should include analog stick controls as an option)! I’m sure the game would have scored higher across the board, which would have helped it out of the gate.

    That said I did put a lot of hours into the game (I’m a sucker for dragon riding games) and eventually got used to the controls, awkward as they were.
  • flow3d
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    flow3d polycounter lvl 18
    I bought Lair, for the lulz

    lulz were nowhere to be had :(
  • Cojax
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    Cojax polycounter lvl 10
    wow I had no idea it was that bad this year. Hope all the folks at Factor5 land on there feat soon :)
  • Asherr
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    Asherr polycounter lvl 18
    A new Rogue Squadron would have been nice but only if it had moved beyond the movie time frames.
  • JacqueChoi
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    JacqueChoi polycounter
    With a few months of no-pay, the writing seemed to be on the wall.

    :(

    I get tired of saying it, but I REALLY hope all involved land on their feet.
  • PeterK
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    PeterK greentooth
    BHG is not closing down, not now anyway. They're about 10 minutes away from us.

    I'm sure they'll make an announcement soon.
  • Super
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    Super polycounter lvl 18
    Really sucks that people lost their jobs. Hopefully they'll land on their feet quickly.
  • Jeff Parrott
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    Jeff Parrott polycounter lvl 19
    Sucks Factor 5 guys. Sorry to hear. Hope everyone still there lands on their feet.

    Heavy Iron and Incinerator Studios are still around...for now. THQ has them doing the Pixar Up games. Once those ship in a few weeks things might go downhill for them though.

    Also it might be good to have a new thread just for closed companies. Maybe that could be a new sticky even!
  • PolyHertz
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    PolyHertz polycount lvl 666
    I updated the list with regards to Pivotal Games, Big Huge Games, Heavy Iron, and Incinerator Studios.

    Also, seeing as their are a lot of these threads on studios closing I second the motion for a 'studio closings' thread. I'll make one and keep it updated if many other people want it.
  • rv_el
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    rv_el polycounter lvl 18
    would you count Free Radical? Cheyanne Mountain?

    EA Black Box
    Midway

    I can't keep track of who when where why anymore. You become desensitized to it.
  • bounchfx
  • Cybroxide
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    Cybroxide polycounter lvl 17
    If we have a studio closing thread I think we should balance it with a studio opening thread. It may give us some perspective on the situation.
  • PolyHertz
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    PolyHertz polycount lvl 666
    rv_el:
    Free Radical didnt die exactly, they went into administration, and have been bought by crytek to become Cryteck UK.

    Cheyanne Mountain didn't pay their employees for a while, but they did eventualy get funding it would appear as they're still around.

    Midway is bankrupt but not dead, and continue to retain a (smaller) staff of artists.

    I'm not completly sure on BlackBoxs status, but I believe despite layoffs they're still going.

    bounchfx:
    I'm not sure if I completly beliee that story, sounds more like 3D Realms is open from no more then a legal standpoint. Sense they let the entire dev team go until hearing about them hiring again or perhaps some secret dev team that was still onboard they are effectivly still dead.

    Steve:
    How about a thread that lists all openings and closings in one? or would it be better to keep the negative and positive threads seperate?
  • Vitor
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    Vitor polycounter lvl 18
    Star Wars Rogue Leader 2 -> one of the best games ever! nuf said....


    what a sad news. but really, games industry need to rethink their approach. I don't think this is working any good except for a few studios. At least in my country prices are ridiculous, i don't buy/play a game since christmas...
  • Gav
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    Gav quad damage
    From what I heard, black Box has been merged into a larger campus here. Some of the employees either went to that campus or got laid off..
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