Elixir Studios to close News
PC News by Games Industry.biz
British independent developer Elixir Studios has announced that it has commenced winding down its operations after a key title was cancelled, but efforts continue to rescue some of the firm's projects.
All of the company's staff will be laid off by the end of the week, although some will continue to work for the firm on a freelance basis, and full redundancy packages will be paid to all employees.
"The important thing to us is that we're in control of our own destiny," Elixir CEO Mark Hewitt told GamesIndustry.biz this morning. "We won't just run up against a brick wall like some developers have. We'll still have money in the bank when we close, we'll treat our staff as they should be treated and help them to find new jobs."
The closure of the studio should also have no bearing on Republic Dawn, the massively multiplayer title which was being co-developed by Elixir and Cambridge-based MMOG experts Nicely Crafted Entertainment, according to Hewitt.
"We were giving technical advice to them on their project, as opposed to any other support," he explained. "We'll still be able to provide that technical advice, and that project should be unaffected."
Elixir was founded seven years ago by Demis Hassabis, and has had two published games - political simulation Republic, which was published by Eidos, and last year's well-received strategy title Evil Genius, published by VU Games.
"I'm very proud of what all the staff at Elixir have achieved and the games we produced," Hassabis said in a statement this morning. "We gave it everything we had but ultimately it wasn't quite enough. It seems that today's games industry no longer has room for small independent developers wanting to work on innovative and original ideas. Perhaps there is no longer any need for them."
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Comments: 1-40 of 40 in total
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The infamous "infinite monkey" engine comment in EDGE.
Edit: That being said, if they are doing what they are saying and winding up with full redundancy to all employees, then well done to them. A far too rare practice these days. /glares at Jez San.
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most recently on 28/04/05 @ 13:47
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They had their two attempts, which is more than most developers get. So I don't quite see why I should pity them. Rogue Games ("Alice") never had a second chance, and they didn't tell everybody how to do it.
True, it IS a pity that good craftsmen lose their jobs because of crappy management, but that's a fact of life, in any business.
Edited 1 times,
most recently on 28/04/05 @ 14:02
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Thamuhacha
28/04/05 @ 13:10
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Shame. Games aside, there were alot of very nice and talented people there.
And well done to them for paying up and doing it properly. Makes a change from the board buggering off with millions for doing a shit job and the employees getting nothing. Naming no names. |
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Clive Dunn
28/04/05 @ 13:24
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"And well done to them for paying up and doing it properly. Makes a change from the board buggering off with millions for doing a shit job and the employees getting nothing. Naming no names. "
Ha, you know you want to ! |
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Clive Dunn
28/04/05 @ 13:36
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^^
I don't believe Republic was ever a good game, a shit concept badly implemented. Apart from that it was fantastic. |
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I'm sorry to hear this, but this kind of thing raises my hackles:
"It seems that today's games industry no longer has room for small independent developers wanting to work on innovative and original ideas. Perhaps there is no longer any need for them." Yes, it's hard, but this is defeatist. Thanks for the moral boost on your way out. Jesus. |
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Thamuhacha
28/04/05 @ 13:43
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>1. That level of Hyperbole rarely comes from designers or developers, but is usualy the result of some bean counter completely missing the point of a random briefing/presentation.
Oh FFS. The "evil marketing/management bastard" argument eh? We just make stuff up based on design doc ver 0.0001 don't we. And then hang the little buggers out to dry when they can't do it. On the other hand, maybe we should just be hugely sceptical about any game we get shown and sell the game on the assumption that 75% of the features won't make it. That would be good. People SERIOUSLY need to get over this idea that the plucky little developer is fighting against the corporate publishing behemoth and realise that both sides make mistakes as often as they get it right. /fumes
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most recently on 28/04/05 @ 14:44
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And the infinite polygon engine wasn't marketing spiel. It first turned up in Demis' Developer Diary in Edge (I can't remember the issue number, but I can dig it out if you want.) And he said:
"I hope that Republic: The Revolution will change the conceptions people outside the games industry have on what games can be about, and that non-games players as well as hardcore gamers will enjoy playing the game. I want to challenge the industry and make them sit up and notice that all this cool new technology we have can be used to create exciting, original and interesting new game environments. I really feel we are on tip of a massive iceberg and I see no limit to where games can go. I feel that with Republic: The Revolution we are exploring way beyond the limit of where the industry is at the moment." this is a good interview with him. and in another interview Hassabis comments, "The state of the art at the moment, 30,000 polys per frame, they wouldn't even be able to render a brick of ours." Riiiiiiight Demis. We aren't good enough to render your bricks. That didn't endear him to the rest of the industry, especially when he went on to release a game that looked like this and this despite over 4 years in development.
Edited 2 times,
most recently on 28/04/05 @ 15:26
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Tyvm to SHIT companies such as €A! They are the DIRECT cause of this sort of things! The original small companies that try to inovate and entertain dont get any chance because of the massive spam of mediocre/bad sequel games from €A. Even more thanks to all the DF's who actually buy that kinda crap instead of buying good games just because they fall for the advertorial indoctrination.
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"Tyvm to SHIT companies such as €A!"
Heheh. You must have been over the moon when they introduced the Euro. How can we make EA sound as evil and money grubbing as Microsoft. Oh man, if only there was some way to mock EA in the same fashion as the hilarious and not-all-tired way as writing 'M$'. Just look at that shit! It just screams "We're all about the cash, bitch!". Nah, I don't think yours is going to catch on, mate :) |
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one half decent game in what, 6/7 years?
its nothing to do with climate, you cannot afford expensive offices when you're only games are selling for £9.99 in the bargin bin. He seems a nice enough chap (i beat him at chess once - wahey) but he doesn't half get these grand ideas which dont actually make very fun games. the bullfrog effect.
Edited 2 times,
most recently on 28/04/05 @ 18:10
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re: "The Bullfrog Effect"
Bullfrog were actually really quite good once upon a time, then Molyneux left and all they did were produce slightly dodgy sequels to his best ideas. It's really more like "The Latter-day Molyneux Effect". His latest announcement about a game allowing you to live your entire life out etc etc. SHUT UP PETER, WE ALL KNOW IT'S GOING TO BE A SIMS CLONE.
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most recently on 28/04/05 @ 18:37
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/agrees with ForMula.
I don't want to see the "little guy" fail, and I certainly don't want the world of games to be a parade of "Licensed Sequel Shite 200X" from EA, but I do think Demis made a lot of mistakes, and it seems that only Peter Molyneux can get away with promising the Earth whilst delivering mediocrity. Good luck to all the ex-Elixir bods, though. |
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"I can hear the games buying public crying right now.
Oh wait, no I can't. Because nobody wanted Elixir's games, which is why they went under. It's all very well them blaming the publishers, but once the game's on the shelves they can't exactly force people to buy it. " It's a more complex issue than that. Some games are good and don't sell well because there's not enough marketing behind them. Some games are bad and don't sell well because there's not enough marketing behind them. Some back games sell well due to good marketing. But good marketing + good game? Well, it's an idea we all strive for. |
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ParticleMan
30/04/05 @ 19:54
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Online distribution for developers is a mirage. It doesn't matter how you distribute, it's how much money you use to market your product. If online distribution becomes a viable you can bet someone like EA will do it (mobile gaming is a good example of EA waiting for a market to ripen).
I wouldn't want to rate the chances of companies of the size of Elixir trying to market products against the EAs of the world. |
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If the games had been better then I would have bought them.
Seems far too often developers worry about the technology and forget about the "game" and if the games not fun then all the polygons and AI programing in the world wont make it a good game. New ideas only work when they're good ideas and old ideas only work when they're done better than before. The two game they made failed to be fun. |
Comments: 1-40 of 40 in total
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