Sony closes Studio Liverpool
UPDATE: Studio was working on next-gen Wipeout say sources
UPDATE
A reliable source has told Eurogamer the studio was working on a "dramatically different" Wipeout title for the next PlayStation console. It had been in production for over a year and was said to be "far along."
They were also told, by a different source, that a title using LA Noire style motion capture and centred around gangsters was also in the works.
Sony has issued an official statement confirming the closure of Studio Liverpool.
"As part of SCE Worldwide Studios, we do regular reviews to ensure that the resources we have can create and produce high quality, innovative and commercially viable projects in an increasingly competitive market place," it reads.
"As part of this process, we have reviewed and assessed all current and planned projects for the short and medium term and have decided to make some changes to our European Studios.
"It has been decided that Liverpool Studio should be closed. Liverpool Studio has been an important part of SCE Worldwide Studios since the outset of PlayStation, and have contributed greatly to PlayStation over the years. Everyone connected with Liverpool Studio, past and present, can be very proud of their achievements.
"However, it was felt that by focusing our investment plans on other Studios that are currently working on exciting new projects, we would be in a stronger position to offer the best possible content for our consumers. Our Liverpool Facility will continue to operate, housing a number of other vital WWS!E and SCEE Departments.
"This should not take anything away from the great work WWS are doing and the incredible games and services that we have made, and continue to make."
Original story
Reports are circulating, supposedly confirmed by Sony at source, that Studio Liverpool has closed, ending 28 years of development.
According to CVG, Michael Denny visited the office on Wednesday to confirm that the time had come to shutter the developer. Sony are said to be looking to relocate as many staff as possible internally.
Just two years ago, Sony cancelled a number of projects in development at the base, citing a need for "project prioritisation".
"It has been decided that production on a number of projects within Studio Liverpool will cease immediately due to project prioritisation," read a statement at the time.
"Our North West Studio Group has been and will continue to be a vital cog in the WWS family, with a history of producing genre defining games such as MotorStorm, WipEout, Formula 1 and WRC and this decision will have no impact of the role that the North West Studio Group will play in the future of all PlayStation platforms."
Sony has been contacted for an official statement regarding the situation.
Founded as Psygnosis in 1984, the studio had become best known for the Wipeout series, a Sony staple which has graced every one of the platform holders machines since debuting on the original PlayStation in 1995. The studio's most recent release was Wipeout 2048 for the Vita.
Edited 1 times. Last edit by Nick Burcombe on 22nd August 2012 12:24pm
Good luck to all those affected.
Best of luck to everyone effected here.
Once again another long running stucio is closed in the UK.
:-(
I enjoyed many of the Psygnosis games immensely when I was younger, and Wipeout was the reason I bought a Playstation back in 1997. I will hugely miss them, and wish everyone involved the best for the future.
Edited 1 times. Last edit by Martin Appleton on 22nd August 2012 3:10pm
There's room at the inn here at Serious Parody (Dundee). We're looking for several experienced programmers to work on console games. So if anyone effected fancies a move, send CV's to careers@serious-parody.com we're also looking for high quality animators too.
Edited 2 times. Last edit by Daniel Hinkles on 22nd August 2012 7:10pm
All the best to everyone involved - hopefully all will find something new pretty quickly.
Wish everyone affected the best of luck finding work. I know it's a contentious issue and I hate to see the UK industry diminished, but if it's an option for you, I'd highly recommend a move to Canada.
Good luck to all of the guys up there though!
Edited 1 times. Last edit by Lindsay Cox on 22nd August 2012 4:33pm
Good on you guys!
This is a massive shocker considering the flood of awesome games that have come out of that studio.
I love Wipeout and hope it doesn't die, but I also dread some scab team working on the franchise. I think no Wipeout is better than crappy Wipeout.
Best of luck, guys, I hope to see some fresh indie games from this crew!
The whole story of the Liverpool game scene (the highs and the lows) needs to be written down before it is lost - I tried to cover the rise and fall of Imagine in the early days but never got close to a final draft. The issues also of the whole BugByte, Elite, Ocean and US Gold story needs reporting - I know for many this will be uncomfortable, but we need a true history of UK development rather than a sugar-coated 'faction'.
I wish all affected by this closure the best for their futures.
Edited 1 times. Last edit by Feargus Carroll on 22nd August 2012 6:45pm
Very bad news :(
Edited 1 times. Last edit by Daniel Hinkles on 22nd August 2012 7:11pm
This will not be the last big console studio to close. The market for their products has collapsed. Fortunately the app market is booming like crazy and is taking up the slack. According to the Economist, apps already keep over 300,000 people employed in America, we can do better!
We'll be visiting Liverpool next week to meet any of the guys and gals affected who'd like to meet us, and talk about potential positions here in sunny Horsham. We'll update via our Twitter account @CareersatCA or for further info give me a buzz directly at alex.wright-manning@creative-assembly.com
For the ex wipeout team, might be worth checking where the ex blackrock staff went to. Chances are they are on similar racing type gigs :)
There are a good number of smaller studios in the north-west which emerged from the ashes of Bizarre Creations, Juice/THQ Digital etc. Moving out of the industry there's a vibrant Digital Marketing agency sector (especially in Manchester) and of course the BBC in Salford.
I'm hoping that some of those affected will seize the opportunity to try their own thing - the success of Steve Hunt (ex-THQ) with Blast Hazard/Cold Beam Games is just one standout from this post by Colin Bell on Develop
[link url=""]http://www.develop-online.net/features/1697/How-teams-survive-a-studio-closure[/link]
Whichever route those affected choose I wish you the absolute best of luck. You can be proud of being part of a phenomenal, much loved studio.
Would love chat informally to anyone affected about positions available here at Jagex Games Studios. We have 77 vacancies at the moment across most conceivable business functions, so please do feel entirely free to ping me an email peter.lovell@jagex.com, message me on twitter @the_shov, or buzz me on LinkedIn (http://uk.linkedin.com/in/peterlovell) to explore opportunities.
A full list of our vacancies can be found on www.jagex.com/careers/ and we can offer significant support towards relocating to Cambridge. My thoughts go out to you all though and I sincerely wish you all the best.
Edited 1 times. Last edit by Peter Lovell on 23rd August 2012 2:00pm
It really is a shame that this is how the Psygnosis story ends. I agree with Kevin Williams that the story should be chronicled somewhere, be it in articles here or a book or something. After all, we are talking about one of the world’s oldest development companies and one of the veterans of the British videogame industry. I’d be very interested to know more about the studio’s situation over the last 5 or 10 years, and whether anyone in a position of influence acknowledged that perhaps they needed to branch out beyond Wipeout. As someone who was a huge fan of their PS1 output like G-Police, Colony Wars, Destruction Derby and Rollcage, this is doubly frustrating as it means there will likely never be a chance of these franchises being revived.
Psygnosis was mismanaged into self combustion. It gave lots of people a unique chance to learn and get their first breaks in the industry but was never going to be allowed to survive under the Sony brand.
There are a number of new mobile devs in Liverpool now and even a new publisher (Ripstone) but between us we probably only employ 70 or 80 people. Less than one old console development team. It would be wrong to say that game development is dead in Liverpool and I am sure that from the 20 odd indies one or two will be very successful but I doubt we will look to create lots of jobs.
nevertheless, the history and pedigree will show hopefully in any new outfit that emerges! All the best to your endeavours!