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Nintendo closing European HQ, laying off 130 employees
Nintendo will close its European headquarters located in Großostheim, Germany, resulting in several redundancies in its workforce. The Wii U and 3DS manufacturer will cut 130 jobs in the process at various European locations and will consolidate its German HQ to Frankfurt. "Nintendo of Europe has entered into a consultation process on a number of changes it is intending to make to its European business which, in the long term, will better enable the European business to adapt to the rapidly changing business environment," Nintendo said in a statement to Games Industry International. The company posted a $229 million net loss last month in its financial results for the year (ending March 31, 2014). It shipped 6.17 million Wii U systems total as of then, well off its original projection of 9 million. "These intended measures have not been made lightly and have only been arrived at after thorough analysis and careful consideration," the company continued. "The intended measures will sadly have a direct effect on some of the employees based in the Großostheim and Frankfurt offices in Germany and would lead to the release of approximately 130 permanent employees." [Image: Nintendo]
Mythic closes, 'end of an era' for former MMO studio
We saw this coming, but it doesn't make it any less regrettable: Long-time MMO studio Mythic Entertainment has been shut down by EA. "We are closing the EA Mythic location in Fairfax, Virginia, as we concentrate mobile development in our other studio locations. We are working with all impacted employees to provide assistance in finding new opportunities, either within EA or with other companies via an upcoming job fair," EA told Kotaku. Former Mythic lead Josh Drescher tweeted his reaction to the news: "Condolences to everyone at Mythic today. It's the end of an era, but you were all part of something amazing." Mythic shuttered Warhammer Online last December, while Ultima Online, Dark Age of Camelot, and many Mythic developers moved over to Broadsword Online Games this past February.
Samsung gives up on its homegrown Music and Book Hub services
Just like HTC with its doomed movie service, Samsung is apparently starting to realize that its in-house efforts can't compete with specialist alternatives. While Spotify has been busily publicizing its rapid growth, the Korean manufacturer has been quietly warning Galaxy phone and tablet owners about the impending closure of its similar, own-brand Music Hub. Users can no longer sign up for the premium monthly subscription option, and a message inside the app says they'll need to re-download any purchased tracks and use up any vouchers before the entire service shuts down on July 1st. This at least suggests that any stored tracks will continue to work after that date, perhaps via 7Digital, whose platform underpinned the Music Hub in the first place.
GameStop to close 120 stores, increase focus on mobile
GameStop intends to close 120 video game retail stores in the current fiscal year as part of its "GameStop 3.0" initiative, the company announced at its 2014 Investor Day event this week. Its plan to scale back gaming operations involves a bigger push into the mobile space, as it will open between 200 and 250 Spring Mobile stores, 20 to 25 Simply Mac locations and 100 to 150 Cricket stores, more than doubling all three retail efforts. The plan to shut down 120 gaming retail locations was first revealed last month in GameStop's guidance for the 2014 year during its fiscal 2013 financial results announcement. The number of stores it expected to close wasn't clear at the time; GameStop noted plans to shutter approximately two percent of its 6,600 stores, amounting to a reduction of roughly 132 stores. We've reached out to GameStop to find out which locations will close in the coming year and will update as we learn more. [Image: GameStop]
UK chain GAME to close dedicated Xbox store
GAME and Microsoft deemed the UK retailer's Xbox store a success, after confirming to MCV the London outlet closes its doors later this month. As MCV notes, the store opened in June 2013 on a short-term lease and with a focus of boosting Xbox One sales at launch. "The short-term contract location for the dedicated Xbox store has given us real insight into what consumers expect from the next generation of retail," said GAME Stores Director Dave Howard told MCV. "We have implemented Xbox sections in all of our stores - we have taken all the best of the Xbox store into over 320 GAME stores around the UK. Customers really showed an appetite for hands-on experience, interactive displays and a way to digitally access Xbox Live content. We will continue to innovate our stores with Microsoft." Pop-up stores for launches are nothing new in London: Ubisoft trotted one out for a game a few years ago, Q Entertainment's Child of Eden. While that game was arguably good enough to warrant its own store, it really could've done with 100 more. [Image: GAME]
CCP is 'reviewing the status' of the World of Darkness IP
In the aftermath of World of Darkness' cancellation and the layoffs at its Atlanta studio, CCP said that it is taking time to "review" the White Wolf IP. "We believe that the World of Darkness IP is very valuable and will be reviewing the status of it in the coming weeks and months, but we have no specific plans under consideration at this time," a CCP spokesperson said to CVG. In the search to understand why World of Darkness got shuttered, players might turn to last December's financials for CCP. In these, the studio lodged a loss of $21 million for the year despite increasing revenue year-over-year. This was mostly due to a "massively increased R&D budget" that was feeding into projects such as WoD.
Square Enix shuts down its India studio after one year, no games
Square Enix has shut down its operations in Mumbai, India, former Square Enix India Vice President Atul Vibhandik confirmed to MCV. He didn't offer additional comments. Square Enix India was established in 2013 and employed six people, all of whom have been laid off. The studio didn't produce any games. Square Enix President Yosuke Matsuda said on April 1 that the company would focus less on global markets and re-shift to its roots in JRPGs. Matsuda said at the time, "Regardless of whether they're for smartphone or console, there's a difficult element to developing global titles, so we'll be making them without focusing too much on the 'global' aspect. For example, in the past, when we developed console games with a worldwide premise, we lost our focus, and not only did they end up being games that weren't for the Japanese, but they ended up being incomplete titles that weren't even fit for a global audience." [Image: Square Enix]
Marvel: Avengers Alliance to shut down on Playdom
Playdom has announced that Marvel: Avengers Alliance will be shutting down for good on April 20th, 2014. "Although it is a difficult decision to shut down a game," a note to the players states, "this decision will allow us to focus on building new, more engaging games." This shutdown will affect only the Playdom version of the game, not the Facebook version. Playdom says that it will offer no refunds or credits for "virtual goods, game currency or other items purchased" once the game stops being offered on Playdom's platform.
Ten things to do in Free Realms before it's gone
Free Realms is set to close down at the end of this month, and despite the fact that the game is aimed toward players much younger than I am, I'm going to miss it. When the game first launched, my two oldest daughters and I played religiously. It was an easy way for us to interact and play together when I was away, and they spent a sizable chunk of their allowances on pets, mounts, and housing items over the years. So I've decided to honor Free Realms with this article detailing a few things you can do in the game before it's gone forever.
RadioShack closing 1,100 stores nationwide
Electronics and video game retailer RadioShack is closing 1,100 of its stores in the United States after a disappointing holiday sales performance, Reuters reports. RadioShack's stock dropped by 23 percent after the company announced a quarterly loss this week. Its planned store closures comprise 20 percent of the company's total retail locations. Over 4,000 RadioShack stores will remain following the upcoming round of closures. Though it's best known for selling electronic components, RadioShack expanded its retail offerings in 2007 to include video games, consoles, and trade-ins. [Image: RadioShack]
RadioShack plans to close over 1,000 'underperforming' stores
RadioShack's Super Bowl ad showing how cool and hip it is may've come a little too late, as the retailer has today announced its intention to close up to 1,100 "underperforming stores" across the US. The news was bundled in the company's 2013 financials, which tell a story of declining sales and continued losses. RadioShack's CEO blamed poor performance on "lower store traffic" and "intense promotional activity," among other things, but expressed faith in the retailer's changing brand identity to turn things around. On the upside, the fancy new "Concept Stores" are allegedly going strong, and around 4,000 locations on top of the thousand-odd facing closure will continue to operate as usual. Perhaps some of those underperforming stores should've been cleared out in the '80s, after all.
Work-for-hire UK indie Remode closing, founders plan new start
UK-based developer Remode will be closing its doors after seven years in operation as a work-for-hire studio, founders Ella Romanos and Martin Darby announced late last week. Romanaos and Darby started Remode with the intention of creating their own IP, using work with other studios to fund development. According to the news on Remode's website, that's no longer the case, though the duo still plan to develop original projects. "We sought to build a work-for-hire platform with the ultimate goal of developing our own IP and seven years in we're incredibly proud of what we have achieved," Romanos and Darby wrote. "Making our own games remains our goal, so we have made the decision to close down Remode as a work-for-hire studio and focus on developing new ways to raise resources for IP projects, plans for which will be announced soon." [Image: Remode]
Over 60 percent of Sony Stores to be closed
Sony announced a restructuring of its Sony Electronics division, resulting in the closure of 20 Sony Stores across the United States. The restructuring will affect approximately 1,000 employees "across all sites," which Sony says will amount to a staff reduction of one-third by the end of the calendar year. Just 11 Sony Stores will remain open: five in California, three in New York, two in Florida and one in Texas. The news follows Sony's decision to sell its Vaio PC brand earlier this month, announced among its third quarter fiscal 2013 results in which it saw a net profit of $257 million. At that time, Sony confirmed plans to cut a total of 5,000 jobs worldwide by the end of the 2014 fiscal year, 1,500 in Japan and 3,500 overseas. We added the list of the 20 Sony Store locations that are slated to close after the break.
Sony to shutter two-thirds of its US stores
Sony Electronics is closing 20 of its 31 US-based store locations, the Japanese consumer electronics giant announced this afternoon. The news follows layoffs at Sony affecting approximately 5,000 employees worldwide; it's unclear if European or Asian Sony stores are affected by today's news (we've asked). The announcement release cites Sony's need, "to maintain its competitiveness in an evolving consumer electronics market" as the reason for the closures. The company also sold off its PC business last month, making today's news yet another step in the ongoing restructuring of Sony. The 11 remaining stores are mostly in or near major markets: New York City, Los Angeles, and Orlando and Houston. Sony's two-floor flagship store in New York City is slated to remain open, though the building above it (housing a variety of Sony offices) was sold last year for a cool $1.1 billion. At the time (January 2013), Sony said it'd stay in the building as a renter for "up to" three years.
Robot research firm Willow Garage closes its doors (update: thankfully untrue)
Rumors of Willow Garage's death may have been very premature, but they've come true all the same. Businessweek reports that company founder Scott Hassan shut down the robotics research pioneer in January to become the dedicated CEO of Suitable Technologies, Willow Garage's telepresence-focused spinoff. The closure means that you won't be seeing follow-ups to machines like the PR2 or TurtleBot 2. However, the firm may have created an enduring legacy through its open source robotics platform -- when Baxter and numerous other automatons are using the code, you could be hearing about Willow Garage's work for some time to come. Update: We've gotten in touch with Willow Garage, and it turns out that rumors of the company's death have been greatly exaggerated... again. While it did move some staff to Suitable Technologies back in August and offloaded support services to Clearpath Robotics, it's still very much in the robot business. Also, the company notes that Hassan has been the CEO of Suitable for roughly three years. It's not clear where Businessweek obtained its info, but it's good to know that Willow Garage is alive and kicking.
Lord of Ultima shutting down in May
The land of Caledonia will soon be swallowed up by the sea of game closures. On Monday, May 12th at 2:00 a.m. EST, Lord of Ultima services will be stopped permanently. Announcing the closure, the developers of Lord of Ultima thanked players for their continued support over the years. Starting now, the ability to buy Play4Free Funds is disabled, but players who currently have the in-game currency are encouraged to spend it before the shutdown. New account creation has also been disabled; those who are already in the game, however, can continue their quest to be one of the final lords ruling over the land. [Thanks to all who sent in tips!]
Timewalk Games, creators of gold DuckTales NES cart, shuts down
Timewalk Games, a company that specialized in reproducing classic video games from the pre-HD era, has blown the dust off a cartridge for the last time. For those unfamiliar with Timewalk's work, you may remember them as the company that crafted the golden DuckTales NES cartridge. The Timewalk website has been all but cleared of any signs of inhabitance; a farewell message is all you'll find on the main page. It reads in part, "Unfortunately, we no longer have time to continue forward with the Timewalk Games project. Unfortunately those of us involved with Timewalk have very busy lives outside of Timewalk (Jobs, Family, etc.) and although we love doing what we do, we cannot keep up with it anymore." While Timewalk served a niche market, this nonetheless puts a damper on would-be old-school collectors, and we wish them the best in their future endeavors. [Thanks, Scott!] [Image: Capcom]
The Daily Grind: How much would you pay to keep an MMO alive?
So here's something that bothers me about this whole SOE MMO armageddon thing. When CEO John Smedley took to Twitter to sympathize with upset Vanguard fans yesterday, he implied that the firm has done all it could to keep the long-running fantasy MMO afloat. "I realize the Vanguard players are upset," he tweeted. "We waited a long time to do this and ran it well past economic viability." The phrase "past economic viability" is odd since SOE has literally been giving Vanguard away for nearly two years now. The other part of the equation that doesn't add up is why SOE -- or any other firm that insists on closing down a license-free MMO -- doesn't first reach out to the affected playerbase and offer them a chance to save the day. It might go something like this. "Dear Vanguard player, we thank you for your support and we regret to inform you that the game is not doing well financially. In order to avoid shutting it down, we require you and every other current player to pay a $50 monthly subscription fee." Sure, 50 bucks is an arbitrary number that I just made up and a large number for an MMO sub. But can anyone credibly state that loyal players wouldn't gladly pay $50 or more if it meant saving their game? How would we know since no MMO company can be bothered to try it? Which leads in to today's Daily Grind question. How much would you pay to keep your favorite MMO alive? Every morning, the Massively bloggers probe the minds of their readers with deep, thought-provoking questions about that most serious of topics: massively online gaming. We crave your opinions, so grab your caffeinated beverage of choice and chime in on today's Daily Grind!
Offensive Combat studio U4iA Games closes
Just over two years after being launched by two Activision expats, Offensive Combat studio U4iA Games is no longer in operation as of today. The news comes via U4iA's site, where no reason is given for the sudden and immediate closure of the Washingon-based studio. "Our sincere apologies to all of our fantastic, supportive fans over these last few years." said former Creative and Social Director Jeremy Dunham. "We wish we could have done better for you. Thank you very much for your support and we hope to see you again on the other side." On his Twitter account, Durham indicated he and his colleagues didn't expect the news, saying they "found out in the blink of an eye" about the closure. Furthermore, there's no confirmation as to what this means for the game itself, which remains currently available through browsers and Facebook. U4IA launched free-to-play shooter Offensive Combat back in 2012, with the lofty aim of providing "the most competitive multiplayer action ever seen within a browser. U4Ia's Dusty Welch, who is credited with launching the Call of Duty franchise at Activision, said back in 2011, "Many studios are making casual games for a core audience. We're making core games for a social audience." The game reached a million registered players in January 2013, shortly after coming to Facebook, and was actively being updated as recently as last month. We'll update this story as we learn more about the studio's closure.
Toki Tori creator Two Tribes loses development staff, continues publishing
Toki Tori developer Two Tribes announced that it is effectively rebooting, paring down its staff to two core team members as it refocuses on the publishing side of its business. Founders Martijn Reuvers and Collin van Ginkel remain with the company, but all previously-employed designers and programmers were laid off at the end of last year as a result of the restructuring. While the development arm of Two Tribes is no more, its parent Two Tribes Publishing is unaffected, and will continue to release new games in a partnership with a newly-formed daughter company. Two Tribes' founders cite an extended development period and low sales for Toki Tori 2 as the driving factors behind the company reboot. "We've decided to move away from creating custom technology and focus on what's readily available," the announcement reads. "As a result we'll be working with a much smaller team on our next game, a 2D side scrolling shooter, which will be re-using the existing Toki Tori 2+ engine." Responding to fan questions via Twitter, Two Tribes notes that it will consider Wii U and PC releases for its next project, which it describes as a mixture of the arcade classics Metal Slug and Gradius.
