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Report: Embracer to shut down Free Radical Design by Christmas
28.11.2023 - 20:51 / gamedeveloper.com
A new report from VGC claims Free Radical Design will be shutting down on December 11. The studio, best known for the TimeSplitters franchise, was under evaluation by parent company Embracer to see if it warranted closure.
Sources speaking to the outlet allege that Embracer CEO Lars Wingfors privately confirmed Free Radical's closure in a company-wide email. In it, he notes the "potential closure" on the December 11 date, calling it a "challenging time for all of us but especially for you, and our focus is to support you as much as we can during this transition."
UK law required Plaion (the umbrella company that runs Free Radical) to consult Free Radical employees first at least 30 days before making redundancies. At time of writing, it remains possible that an interested party may acquire the Nottingham, UK-based studio.
Even so, VGC noted that a majority of Free Radical staff have already put out the notice that they're looking for work, with 55 of 100 employees reportedly announcing they're looking for employment.
Free Radical was revived by Plaion in 2021 for the specific purpose of creating a fourth TimeSplitters game. The first-person shooter series was started by the original Free Radical during the mid-2000s. The studio closed in 2008 following the release of the PlayStation 3 shooter Haze.
Presently, it's unknown what will become of the new TimeSplitters project should Free Radical close down a second time. Game Developer has reached out to Embracer for comment and will update when a response is given.
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