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acm2000 · Dec 18, 2008

ok, this is as good as confirmed now:

taken from EG

"The locks were changed yesterday, and security is outside the offices not letting people in."

apparently staff are hiding in the nearby Holiday Inn trying to find out what is going on.

EDIT: SAUCE "Aye it's going dooown or something. My colleague next to me used to work there and all his Free Radical ex-colleagues' Facebook statuses are like "oh my god life is shit" "dooom" "doesn't know what to say" etc."

EDIT: more "confirmations"

http://www.edge-online.com/features/source-free-radical-locked-up
http://www.videogaming247.com/2008/12/18/rumour-free-radical-shutting-up-shop/
http://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/free-radical-design-latest-to-face-financial-trouble
http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/free-radical-design-closes-doors
http://www.computerandvideogames.com/article.php?id=204401&site=cvg

EDIT: final confirmation?

http://www.edge-online.com/features/source-free-radical-locked-up

meppi · Dec 18, 2008

oldergamer · Dec 18, 2008

This wouldn't surprise me. In this day and age it only takes one bad game to kill most independent studios as it's really difficult to build a war chest of cash when trouble occurs.. As soon as you have the stigma of a poor title, publishers will start to doubt your abilities, thus making it harder to get the next title picked up.

Johnkers · Dec 18, 2008

acm2000 said:
taken from EG

"The locks were changed yesterday, and security is outside the offices not letting people in."

apparently staff are hiding in the nearby Holiday Inn trying to find out what is going on.

Jesus christ, that's fucking terrible if true. At this time of the year too.

Psychotext · Dec 18, 2008

There are a few FRD posters on EG... no replies from them yet but if they're not in the office that probably shouldn't be surprising.

JimiNutz · Dec 18, 2008

Go back to Rare!

But yeah, that sucks just before xmas

glaurung · Dec 18, 2008

So no TimeSplitters 4?

This blows.

And obviously horrible for the employees.

Kyoufu · Dec 18, 2008

Send Jack Bauer in. WE HAVE HOSTAGES!

J-Rock · Dec 18, 2008

Oh shit.

norinrad21 · Dec 18, 2008

WTF???????

industrian · Dec 18, 2008

What the fuck?!

Kafel · Dec 18, 2008

Forget about Sony, save Free Radical.

acm2000 · Dec 18, 2008

Psychotext said:
There are a few FRD posters on EG... no replies from them yet but if they're not in the office that probably shouldn't be surprising.

i can picture loads of developers in the holiday inn, busy beavering away on their blackberrys

sprsk · Dec 18, 2008

BradleyUK · Dec 18, 2008

antiloop · Dec 18, 2008

Too bad. Hope it turns out well for the employees.

marc^o^ · Dec 18, 2008

oldergamer said:
In this day and age it only takes one bad game to kill most independent studios

This is true, and this is sad.

VOOK · Dec 18, 2008

Fucks sake, haze was pretty crappy but no one deserves that.

ToyMachine228 · Dec 18, 2008

Let's see, I have know idea if this is true or not, but they were working on TimeSplitters 4, and Star Wars: Battlefront 3.

EatChildren · Dec 18, 2008

Wow, this can't be true, can it?

Sure, Haze was a sack of crap and bombed hard, but I would have thought some publisher would jump on the premise of TimeSplitters 4. It's not like its an unknown franchise without a fanbase.

If this is true that seriously fucking blows.

[Nintex] · Dec 18, 2008

WTF is wrong with this industry...

Recession proof my ass

Kyoufu · Dec 18, 2008

I'm not surprised honestly. What were they going to make? Timesplitters 4? There is no room in the market for TS anymore. Last gen sure, but not this one.

tahrikmili · Dec 18, 2008

Sad to hear, but not unexpected.

MrFingers · Dec 18, 2008

ToyMachine228 said:
Let's see, I have know idea if this is true or not, but they were working on TimeSplitters 4, and Star Wars: Battlefront 3.

Nooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!:'(

HUELEN10 · Dec 18, 2008

Did Free-Radical fire all those people or is FR gone or did some dude buy FR?

I am totally confizzled here. anyone want to get me up to speed?

carlosp · Dec 18, 2008

Haze, Secret Sights and a medicore Timesplitters 3 are reason enough to lose faith I believe.

Psychotext · Dec 18, 2008

HUELEN10 said:
Did Free-Radical fire all those people or is FR gone or did some dude buy FR?

We don't know anything yet. Only that they're not answering the phone and apparently the offices are locked.

Hesemonni · Dec 18, 2008

ITT: We grieve for a forgettable, wrong horse betting, developer going under.

Rezbit · Dec 18, 2008

Dammit! Such a shame for all those workers. And I really wanted TS4! But alas, I guess the era of super-fast FPS truly has passed us by. Fuck!

Jethro · Dec 18, 2008

Nintendo to the rescue!

Crye · Dec 18, 2008

Any source better then eurogamer forum poster? Or is that poster an employee?

If true, damn this sucks

Someone bail them out.

Fallout-NL · Dec 18, 2008

Just release TS2HD on xbla and psn, company saved.

Steroyd · Dec 18, 2008

What!?

All they did was make Haze once, why GOD WHY!?. :_:

Sean · Dec 18, 2008

Not very surprising if true. Free Radical hasn't produced a decent selling game in the last few years (Second Sight and Haze were both huge flops) and Timesplitters was never really a huge franchise. And I'm guessing their project with LucasArts got canned too as it's now been like three years without a peep on that.

That sucks though, has to be the worst time of the year to lose your job.

AniHawk · Dec 18, 2008

If only they released Game Zero, this crisis might have been averted.

EDIT: Oh wait, that was Zoonami.

navanman · Dec 18, 2008

Lets hope Rare, Codemasters & SCEE take on all of the best employees.

Defuser · Dec 18, 2008

MrFingers said:
Nooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!:'(

Look at the bright side, Pandemic may take over the battlefront franchise again.

Dre · Dec 18, 2008

Damn that sucks if true, I was looking forward to Timesplitters 4 after that teaser some time ago.

acm2000 · Dec 18, 2008

some different flavour sauces added to the op

Gazunta · Dec 18, 2008

Oh, damn it. I really hope this isn't true.

Will 2008 hurry up and end already? It's been a blood bath

Median · Dec 18, 2008

Goddammit no, I wanted another Timesplitters so much

Magik · Dec 18, 2008

Gazunta said:
Oh, damn it. I really hope this isn't true.

Will 2008 hurry up and end already? It's been a blood bath

It's going to get a lot worse once 2009 starts.

brain_stew · Dec 18, 2008

This my friends is why the HD business model is broken.

It HAS to change or there'll be very little studios left.

Nuclear Muffin · Dec 18, 2008

Another developer bites the dust, the HD business model simply isn't sustainable when one game can completely devastate a developer!

Here's hoping either Nintendo or Rare pick them up, that's where the staff did best!

Francias Castiglione · Dec 18, 2008

Shitty time to happen, I would imagine those with talent will find jobs easily enough.

timetokill · Dec 18, 2008

If anybody wants to start a "The Great 2008 Industry Shakedown of Betting on the Wrong Horse" with a running thread of companies making cuts or going under, that would be swell.

f@luS · Dec 18, 2008

the timing is bad but thats how it is. they made a bad game. Every company working bad may go out of business soon. its not VG related (or HD). Its just how it is nowadays.

Fersis · Dec 18, 2008

Hesemonni said:
ITT: We grieve for a forgettable, wrong horse betting, developer going under.

Dude ,if you dont like the games they make its ok.
But they are losing their jobs, its not fun. ;_;

wolfmat · Dec 18, 2008

brain_stew said:
This my friends is why the HD business model is broken.

It HAS to change or there'll be very little studios left.

Well, let's face it, they just put out unsuccessful games in the last years. So they don't sell stuff. And as a result, they've got monetary problems at some point.

So it's not so much the business model here, although I agree that it's really broken. For entirely different reasons though.

AniHawk · Dec 18, 2008

brain_stew said:
It HAS to change or there'll be very little studios left.

Actually, I think there'll be very big studios left.

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