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Several weeks after it <a href="http://www.gamasutra.com/php-bin/news_index.php?story=21586">entered bankruptcy administration</a> and <a href="http://www.gamasutra.com/php-bin/news_index.php?story=21699">laid off a reported 140 staffers</a>, UK-based dev

Chris Remo, Blogger

February 4, 2009

1 Min Read

Several weeks after it entered bankruptcy administration and laid off a reported 140 staffers, UK-based studio Free Radical Design has been acquired by independent German developer Crytek. The news was let slip to consumer site 1UP by Free Radical writer Rob Yescombe, who penned the script to the studio's most recent game, Haze. Gamasutra has independently verified the report. Following Free Radical's layoffs, 40 employees were said to have remained; there have been no indications of further firings since then. The Nottingham development house was founded in 1999 by several former Rare employees, and is best known for its long-running TimeSplitters first-person shooter series. It is unclear if the in-development TimeSplitters 4 will be completed under the auspices of Crytek. Shortly after news of Free Radical's administration proceedings became public, it was revealed that key studio figures spun off a new studio, Pumpkin Beach. Crytek, responsible for the original Far Cry as well as the recent Crysis series, has been aggressively expanding its operations. In addition to Free Radical, it operates four development studios: its Frankfurt headquarters, as well as offices in Ukraine, Hungary, and Bulgaria.

About the Author(s)

Chris Remo

Blogger

Chris Remo is Gamasutra's Editor at Large. He was a founding editor of gaming culture site Idle Thumbs, and prior to joining the Gamasutra team he served as Editor in Chief of hardcore-oriented consumer gaming site Shacknews.

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