Bioshock developers Irrational Games are winding down according to co-founder Ken Levine and all but 15 members of staff are going to lose their jobs. He issued the statement yesterday as he is starting a smaller studio with Take Two who are going to work on digital only products.
Official Statement
I am winding down Irrational Games as you know it, I'll be starting a smaller, more entrepreneurial endeavor at Take-Two. That is going to mean parting ways with all but about fifteen members of the Irrational team. There's no great way to lay people off, and our first concern is to make sure that the people who are leaving have as much support as we can give them during this transition.
Besides financial support, the staff will have access to the studio for a period of time to say their goodbyes and put together their portfolios. Other Take-Two studios will be on hand to discuss opportunities within the company, and we'll be hosting a recruiting day where we'll be giving 3rd party studios and publishers a chance to hold interviews with departing Irrational staff.
I need to refocus my energy on a smaller team with a flatter structure and a more direct relationship with gamers. In many ways, it will be a return to how we started: a small team making games for the core gaming audience. When I first contemplated what I wanted to do, it became very clear to me that we were going to need a long period of design, Initially, I thought the only way to build this venture was with a classical startup model, a risk I was prepared to take. But when I talked to Take-Two about the idea, they convinced me that there was no better place to pursue this new chapter than within their walls. After all, they're the ones who believed in and supported BioShock in the first place.
I'm handing the reins of our creation, the BioShock universe, to 2K so our new venture can focus entirely on replayable narrative," he said. "If we're lucky, we'll build something half as memorable as BioShock.
FULL STATEMENT HERE
I am winding down Irrational Games as you know it, I'll be starting a smaller, more entrepreneurial endeavor at Take-Two. That is going to mean parting ways with all but about fifteen members of the Irrational team. There's no great way to lay people off, and our first concern is to make sure that the people who are leaving have as much support as we can give them during this transition.
Besides financial support, the staff will have access to the studio for a period of time to say their goodbyes and put together their portfolios. Other Take-Two studios will be on hand to discuss opportunities within the company, and we'll be hosting a recruiting day where we'll be giving 3rd party studios and publishers a chance to hold interviews with departing Irrational staff.
I need to refocus my energy on a smaller team with a flatter structure and a more direct relationship with gamers. In many ways, it will be a return to how we started: a small team making games for the core gaming audience. When I first contemplated what I wanted to do, it became very clear to me that we were going to need a long period of design, Initially, I thought the only way to build this venture was with a classical startup model, a risk I was prepared to take. But when I talked to Take-Two about the idea, they convinced me that there was no better place to pursue this new chapter than within their walls. After all, they're the ones who believed in and supported BioShock in the first place.
I'm handing the reins of our creation, the BioShock universe, to 2K so our new venture can focus entirely on replayable narrative," he said. "If we're lucky, we'll build something half as memorable as BioShock.
FULL STATEMENT HERE
