Rumor: EA Cuts Pandemic Brisbane Loose
According to some Internet scuttlebutt Pandemic’s Brisbane Australia studio has been cut loose by Electronic Arts. The LA based studio remains intact, so don’t freak out or cheer if that was your measured response to the situation.
The studio behind the Destroy All Humans franchise apparently gets to keep all of its intellectual property and is currently looking for new partners. While there’s no hard evidence to support it beyond a prior relationship, the studio probably can find a friend or two at THQ; the company has published several titles including Destroy All Humans! Path of the Furon and Destroy All Humans! 2.
While EA is not commenting on the story, a spokesperson for the company has told Gamasutra that they “do not expect to make any more public announcements until our earnings call in early February.” Meanwhile, over at former Pandemic Brisbane programmer Tony Albrecht’s Seven Degrees of Freedom blog, he reveals that he has been made redundant, but has already secured a coding job at a new undisclosed company in Brisbane. This at least confirms that there have been layoffs at the studio.
EA announced in December of last year that it would be reducing its worldwide staff by 1000, and this seems to fall in line with the dirty work that the company believes it must undertake.
