Sony Online Entertainment today confirmed the closure of three of its studios, gaming business publication Gamasutra reports. SOE is shuttering its Denver, Seattle, and Tucson studios, laying off 205 people and cancelling troubled spy shooter The Agency.
"As part of this restructuring, SOE is discontinuing production of The Agency so it can focus development resources on delivering two new MMOs based on its renowned PlanetSide and EverQuest properties, while also maintaining its current portfolio of online games," said a company representative in an email statement. "All possible steps are being taken to ensure team members affected by the transition are treated with appropriate concern."
An early gameplay screenshot of The Agency, now cancelled (click to enlarge)
Originally announced in 2007, SOE Seatle's The Agency was a massively multiplayer online shooter destined for PlayStation 3 and PC. Had the game seen the light of day, players would have had the opportunity to play as an elite agent in a world of super-spies, battling cooperatively and competitively in a persistent online world.
We've reached out to several SOE representatives for comment on the closures and cancellation. We'll keep you updated on the situation.
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UPDATE: Ryan Peters, PR manager for Sony Online Entertainment, just responded to our inquiries.
"This strategic decision will have no impact on SOE’s current portfolio of live games; additionally SOE will transition development efforts for the Denver and Tucson studios’ suite of products to its San Diego headquarters," reads the statement Peters provided. "This strategic alignment of development resources better positions SOE to remain a global leader in online gaming and deliver on its promise of creating entertaining games for players of all ages, and servicing the 20 million players that visited SOE servers in just the past year."
Best of luck to the hundreds of now-unemployed developers who must now seek out new job
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