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29.11.2023 - 03:31 / gamingbolt.com / Lars Wingefors
After reports from earlier this month that developer Free Radical Design—which had been working on a revival of classic sci-fi shooter TimeSplitters—was on the verge of being shut down, Embracer CEO Lars Wingefors has seemingly confirmed internally that the studio will be closed before Christmas.
According to VideoGamesChronicle, Wingefors confirmed privately that the studio, as part of company-wide cuts, was going to be shut down on December 11. Embracer itself hasn’t publicly confirmed the closure of Free Radical Design as of yet.
“As we move through the consultation process and face the potential closure of Free Radical Design on 11 December 2023, I want to express my gratitude for your commitment and the remarkable work you’ve done and still keep doing,” said Wingefors in an internal email. “This is 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.”
Since Embracer hasn’t yet confirmed the closure of the studio publicly, it is currently unknown what the fate of the TimeSplitters revival will be. Embracer has seen quite a bit of turmoil this year, with Saints Row and Red Faction developer Volition being shut down earlier in 2023.
Studios being shut down are part of Embracer Group’s restructuring efforts announced earlier this year, since the company had been facing financial troubles after failing to close a deal with Savvy Group. As part of the restructuring, Tomb Raider developer Crystal Dynamics has also seen layoffs.
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The latest studio to be affected by Embracer's «comprehensive restructuring programme» is Insurgency and Day of Infamy developer New World Interactive.
It’s been a tough ol’ year for people working in the corporate video game world. Publishers and studios have been laying people off at an alarming rate. Embracer Group is just one example, and it’s recently been suggested that the holding company may be closing down Free Radical Design.
German developer Fishlabs is the latest Embracer outfit to experience job cuts.
Three weeks after it was reported by VGC that Free Radical Design was allegedly being threatened with closure, Embracer Group’s CEO, Lars Wingefors, has reportedly acknowledged this threat within a company email (shared with VGC by anonymous sources).
Embracer management has now apparently confirmed Free Radical Design's closure to its staff.
Free Radical Design, the second iteration of the Timespliters and Haze studio, might very well be closed before this Christmas.
Embracer Group CEO Lars Wingefors has reportedly confirmed to employees that TimeSplitters studio Free Radical is facing closure next month, as part of a sweeping restructuring programme that has already resulted in more than 900 job cuts at the company.
The Embracer mass layoffs train has come for Fishlabs, the Hamburg-based studio behind space shooter Chorus. Embracer have laid off more than half the Fishlabs team - "around 50 people" - as part of a restructuring operation that has already seen the Swedish conglomerate cut over 900 jobs across their business over the summer.
TimeSplitters studio Free Radical Design faces closure before Christmas, Embracer CEO Lars Wingefors has privately acknowledged.
Veteran German game developer Fishlabs is the latest Embracer-owned studio to suffer layoffs, VGC understands.
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