microsoft-studios-vancouver
Latest
Microsoft Vancouver is now Black Tusk Studios, building 'the next Halo'
Microsoft Studios Vancouver has been rebranded as Black Tusk Studios, and the team is tasked with creating Microsoft's "next big entertainment franchise," or as the layman says it, "the next Halo."Black Tusk has 55 employees and looks to double that number within a year; those already there have an average of 12 years experience building AAA games. This includes studio manager and former EA man, Mike Crump."We are working on Microsoft's next big entertainment franchise," Crump tells The Vancouver Sun. "We're not working on an existing franchise; we're looking to build the next Halo here in Vancouver, for example, which is really exciting. We are building something from the ground up."Microsoft laid off a small number of people in Vancouver earlier this year, but said it remains invested in the British Columbia games industry. If it's pouring enough money to build another Halo franchise into Black Tusk, we'd say Microsoft is heavily invested, indeed.
Report: Microsoft reduces staff at Vancouver studio, cans 'Project Columbia' for Kinect
Microsoft has confirmed that a "small" number of positions at its Vancouver-based development studio have been terminated. According to an official statement, the roles were no longer deemed necessary after development ceased on Microsoft's free-to-play Flight, which was released in February, and an unreleased Kinect project known only as "Columbia."Project Columbia, as described in late 2011, was to be an educational Kinect title meant to engage young players by pairing books with interactive music and illustrations. It was being designed in collaboration with Sesame Workshop, the nonprofit (and muppet-infused) educational organization.A report on Kotaku brought the layoffs to light earlier today, after several former employees of the Vancouver studio shared the news on Twitter. A Microsoft Studios spokesperson claims "human resources is working with the affected individuals to find new roles within the company," and that Microsoft remains invested in the British Columbia games industry.
