Originally posted by: Lonyo
Well, it says the studio is closing down, but they are going to try and place the employees elsewhere in the game studios.
Honestly to me it's nothing to care about, but then I haven't thought much of any Ensemble games beyond AoE2.
It's not like they're all being made jobless though, MS are still going to be employing as many guys as they can it seems.
Every company that is shut down by a publisher claims they will help the former employees find work. It is all crap , it is just MS trying to save face.
Development requires teams and often those teams over many games get to know how each person works and together that is what makes the games great. When you break that up you can't just pick apart the team and toss them wherever you have a free spot.
It is the sad trend in development now , where it is no longer about the quality of a title, but quantity.
Unfortunately developing games doesn't work like other jobs where a resume gets you a job. It is still very much a who you know type career.
The same thing killing companies in other markets is killing it for developers.
Too many suits without a damn clue on what they are making decisions about.
This morning, we reported that Microsoft has emphasized its commitment to PC gaming despite its announcement that it would be closing Age of Empires creator Ensemble Studios.
Shane Kim, Microsoft VP of interactive entertainment, echoed the sentiment and went on to assure worried gamers about the future of the multi-million-selling Age of Empires strategy series. "Microsoft continues to own Age of Empires." Kim explained to Edge. "We're still super excited for the potential for the franchise. The Windows gaming world continues to evolve, and we believe in the future of that property."
Kim also elaborated on the new company that is to be created from the remains of Ensemble. The new studio will be independent and founded by the heads of Ensemble, but Kim promises "we will have an ongoing relationship with that new company" including post-release support for Ensemble's final project, Halo Wars.
Should a new Age of Empires game be on the way, it is unknown what development studio will undertake the effort.
Translation:
We wanted to take the game a direction that the original team wasn't comfortable with, so we gave them all their walking papers , except for the execs, and now we will make the game the way WE want.
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