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Trion Worlds Closes San Diego Studio, Ex-CEO Returns
The trouble continues at Trion Worlds, with news that the studio behind the MMO/television hybrid project Defiance has been shuttered.
Trion Worlds confirmed to PC Gamer that the company's San Diego studio has been closed. This news follows some previous rounds of layoffs that were conducted in the studio. According to Trion Worlds, the continuing maintenance of Defiance will be conducted by the company's Redwood City studio, which also manages Rift. Trion says that "[it is] working hard to ensure that a number of great people will be making the move from San Diego to the Bay Area and continue their work at Trion."
The company also revealed that former Rift chief creative officer Scott Hartsman is coming back to serve as Trion's CEO. Hartsman said, "We're going to rapidly be laying the groundwork for a new strategy for Trion -- one that's closer to the foundation of how we've had our wins so far, and then extending that base into the enduring success this company can, and will, be."
[Sources: PC Gamer and Massively]
Our
Take:
After the layoffs that had hit Trion's San Diego studio, I can't
say I'm surprised. It's a shame, as some of my coworkers, including Adam Biessener
(who reviewed it), Andy Reiner, Matt Miller, and Mike Futter were fans of the
game. It goes to show you how risky the MMO genre is for publishers. Mostly, I'm
just sick and tired of reporting about people in the game industry losing their
jobs. Hope everyone at Trion San Diego lands on their feet.
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