Foundation 9 scales back studios

According to published reports, mega game development studio Foundation 9 has decided to scale back its development capacity through a series of cutbacks to personel and studio closures. The company has said that it did so due to the slowing market. The changes include the closure of its Fizz Factor studio and a conglomeration of its Amaze and Griptonite studios. Cutbacks will also be made at Double Helix Games, according to a Venture Beat report.

In a statement confirming these cutbacks, the company said the following:

“It’s important to F9 to remain a strong and profitable studio, so that we can continue to provide the best possible services to our publishing partners and employees,” the statement read.

“From time to time we make decisions to grow or shrink capacity in relation to market conditions, and we do not make public comments on these decisions.

“We can confirm that we recently merged the operations of our two Kirkland studios, Amaze and Griptonite. Having separate ‘console’ and ‘handheld’ studios under the same roof simply didn’t make sense in light of the convergence in capabilities of modern game hardware

“J.C Connors, studio head of Griptonite, will lead the combined studio. As part of that restructuring, and our normal practice of monitoring business conditions, we made the decision to close our Austin, TX handheld studio, Fizz Factor.”

Green Lantern game rumored

According to a report on VentureBeat, citing several undisclosed sources, a Green Lantern video game is in the works and is believed to be linked to the Green Lantern film from Casino Royale and Goldeneye director Martin Campbell. According to this report, the game will be developed by Double Helix, who most recently worked on the G.I. Joe movie tie-in games and Silent Hill Homecoming.

Of course, it doesn’t make a lot of sense if it is true, considering that Warner Bros. owns Snowblind Studios, who made the wonderful Justice League Heroes games for PS2, PSP and Xbox. Both Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 versions of the game are in the works, says VentureBeat.

Meanwhile, Warner Bros is not talking about this story, saying only that it does not comment on rumor and speculation.

Marvel Vs. Capcom 2: New Age Of Heroes Confirmed

Capcom confirmed that it will re-release the 2D fighting game mash up, Marvel Vs. Capcom 2: New Age Of Heroes on both Xbox 360 and PS 3 this summer. This classic remake was rumored to be in the works for quite some time, so it’s good to know that all those reports since last year weren’t complete fabrications.

The new release will be based on the Dreamcast version of the game, with a few graphical tweaks thrown in for good measure like high definition graphics, online multiplayer for up to four players, and all 56 characters. The game will be released on Xbox Live Arcade for 1200 Microsoft Points and on the PlayStation Network for $15. The demo will be available on the PlayStation Network in North America on April 30.

The game is being developed for both systems by Foundation 9.

EA Confirms Upcoming GI Joe Game

Coming from the “About Damn Time” department, Electronic Arts finally confirmed this morning that, as a part of its exclusive licensing deal with Hasbro, it is currently deep in development of a new game based on the G.I. Joe toys and upcoming live-action movie. The game is scheduled to release around the same time as Paramount’s upcoming G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra movie, due to hit theaters August 7th. This will be the first time the G.I. Joe team has been seen on home consoles since the release of Capcom’s G.I. Joe: The Atlantis Factor on the NES back in 1992.

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