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[Update] Mediocre Games Can't Save Your Company. Free Radical Closes Indefinitely

December 18, 2008 in Rumor comments 25

UK based company Free Radical, known for their games TimeSplitters and Haze will be closing their doors, according to inside sources, says Kotaku.

Sources have confirmed that employees were locked out of their offices this morning at the Nottingham office. A meeting held later today ended with the closure of the company.

While somewhat popular series TimeSplitters helped gain the company reputation, their leap into the PS3 scene with Haze was not so well received by the public, with only a 55 metacritic score.

Free Radical had plans to work with LucasArts on a Star Wars: Battlefront game but sources say that LucasArts dropped the deal. This could be one of the major factors that played into the companys downfall.

Update:
According to Spong;
http://news.spong.com/article/16788/Free_Radical_Were_Not_Closed?cb=385
Rob Yescombe, screenwriter for Free Radical denies the rumor floating around that Free Radical has shut their doors. Does Kotaku have bad "inside sources" or maybe they're just stretching the truth a bit?

tekmosis via kotaku.com »
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  • 0
    Shortman Dec 18, 08
    Lucas Arts should have made the deal. A new Battlefront game would be great.
    • 0
      Newcloud Dec 18, 08
      they could still make it just not with them
  • 0
    Slumpy monkey Dec 18, 08
    Well that blows. They were a good developer, shame for them to close.

    I wanted a new battlefront .
    • 0
      tekmosis Dec 18, 08
      It may not be true at this point. I've updated the article to include a new bit of information from Spong.
  • 0
    kik36 Dec 18, 08
    What an odd situation. I'm watching with interest.
  • 0
    Zero and X Dec 18, 08
    Kotaku says Free Radical is out of business, but Free Radical themselves deny it, so are they trying to cover it up for whatever reason? Or are Kotaku just using a really unreliable source?
    • 0
      Slumpy monkey Dec 18, 08
      Why would they cover it up?
      • 0
        Zero and X Dec 18, 08
        Thats why I said "for whatever reason" I don't know, it does seem pointless to me. I am leaning towards Kotaku being wrong as it makes most sense.
      • 0
        kik36 Dec 18, 08
        There are plenty of reasons for a company going out of business to cover it up.....sometimes it's just because they don't want their employees to jump off of the sinking ship.
        • 0
          Slumpy monkey Dec 18, 08
          If the business has closed down, than the ship has already sunk. They would have all been made redundant.
        • 0
          kik36 Dec 18, 08
          There are still creditors and investors to appease. Perhaps the screenwriter wants to sell all of his stock options before they go into the shitter.....LMAO Who knows.
        • 0
          Sayyed Dec 18, 08
          Isn't that illegel to sell your stocks like that.
        • 0
          Ameer Dec 18, 08
          Yes. Doesn't stop it happening.
  • 0
    PacoDG Dec 18, 08
    *bleep*, two of the most untrustworthy sites posting this news. Spong has a huge bad track record. Kotaku I believe slightly more. But damn, I don't want to believe this at all
  • 0
    PacoDG Dec 18, 08
    Bah, found more sources, adding them to the source list on the original post now, this f'n sucks so bad
    • 0
      PacoDG Dec 18, 08
      "Cameron Gunn, a spokesperson for Resolve, told ThisIsNottingham: “The company was placed in to administration yesterday afternoon.

      “We will be spending the next three or four days assessing the financial position of the company but it’s business as usual, although we have asked that almost all of the employees apart from a skeleton crew remain at home.

      “All employees have been paid up until the end of December and we hope to make another announcement before Christmas or very soon thereafter, but we must stress at this stage that it’s business as usual.”

      The developer has 185 staff."
      • 0
        kik36 Dec 18, 08
        LMAO can't say I would call that "business as usual".
  • 1
    Gamesta100* Dec 18, 08
    Man the Timesplitters series is my favourite FPS series ever.

    Second Sight was also an amazing game.

    I hope they don't close down.
  • 1
    Bale Fire Dec 18, 08
    It would be a shame to close down now when they've already released hints and teasers for Timesplitters 4.
  • 0
    BlackLabel Dec 18, 08
    Though perhaps good can come of this, i mean Fallout 3 probably wouldn't have been as good or as commercial without Black Isle Studio's going out of business. If this is true perhaps another big developer can pick up the Haze and TimeSplitters brand and try their luck with it, Haze will probably be easier to work with as there are very few fans of that game.
    • 0
      Final Blade Dec 18, 08
      Kinda hard to see a haze 2 appear, after the bombing of sales Haze 1 did. Seems pointless. Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed Haze, but that doesn't negate the sales and the scores.

      TimeSplitters is another issue. But seeming how this has been denied, for whatever reason, I'm not taking this too much.
  • 4
    dwg14390 Dec 18, 08
    "Mediocre games can't save your company"

    Nintendo disagrees
  • 0
    BANDITO ATTACK Dec 18, 08
    i was literally JUST talking to my brother about Timesplitters 4, and then game companies that are going out of business. O__o

    if they are, indeed, out of business, and ts4 is gone with them, i will be VERY disappointed. :{
  • 0
    pooOBKp Dec 18, 08
    If they are doing the new Battlefront...I will be very upset. I've been waiting for the announcement for a while now.
  • 1
    Taker4ever Dec 19, 08
    Aw, no Timesplitters 4.

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