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Embracer Group, Free Radical’s parent company, has officially confirmed the TimeSplitters developer’s closure. Though the studio’s shuttering had been well publicized following the shutdown of its official website and several farewell messages from members of the development team, it had not been announced by the holding company until today.
VideoGamer reached out to Embracer Group for comment regarding the future of Free Radical’s IPs, and will update this article with any information we receive.
ORIGINAL STORY FOLLOWS: TimeSplitters Rewind developer Free Radical has sadly fallen victim to Embracer Group’s ongoing restructuring efforts after the Nottingham-based studio confirmed that they have been closed once again through their official website. Free Radical’s site, which used to showcase the studio’s various creations and projects under development, now merely says: “404 Company Not Found,” referring to the ever-present error code that signifies a webpage’s permanent removal.
As mentioned above, this isn’t the first time the studio has been closed down, as Free Radical had also temporarily been shuttered back in 2008 and again in 2014 due to financial difficulties. Though development on the TimeSplitters revival had been well underway, progress on the remake seemingly had not been enough for Embracer Group to hold off on their ruthless downsizing, as several developers went on LinkedIn to confirm the studio’s dissolution.
Free Radical’s IT Manager went on the social networking site to reveal that “over 80 people” are now out of work following the studio’s closure: “Well, that’s it, officially the final day of our time at Free Radical Design and an entire studio (just over 80 people) is out of work.” Studio Development Director Steve Ellis stated in a separate post: “Today I had to inform all start at Free Radical Design that they were being made redundant, at the worst possible time of year, and through no fault of their own.”
“This industry needs to grow up and learn how to do better and stop treating its staff as dispensable,” Ellis continued. “We’re unfortunately only the latest in a very long line of similar stories this year.” Unfortunately, the latter part of Ellis’s statement continues to ring true, especially for studios under the Embracer Group umbrella, as the aggressive holding company had dissolved several studios in the past few months, including Saints Row developer Volition.
It’s currently unclear what the future holds for TimeSplitters Rewind and Free Radical’s other IPs, including Haze and Second Sight, after the studio was closed. However, it’s safe to say that this latest round of layoffs means we won’t be seeing the revamped project come to fruition any time soon, much to the chagrin of its fans.
