Seattle, Washington – Take-Two Interactive made significant waves in the gaming industry last month by announcing plans to streamline its operations, including cutting hundreds of jobs and canceling millions of dollars worth of projects. Today, the company took another step in this direction by shutting down two of its game studios responsible for popular titles like Kerbal Space Program 2 and OlliOlli World.
An employment notice filed in Washington State revealed that Take-Two was planning to lay off 70 employees in Seattle, where Intercept Games, the maker of Kerbal Space Program 2, is based. Additionally, staff at Roll7 in London received confirmation of their impending layoffs. Both studios were under Private Division, Take-Two’s publishing label for smaller, unique games.
Kerbal Space Program 2, a game that has faced challenges since its Early Access release on Steam last year, was originally being developed by Star Theory before Take-Two brought the project in-house to Intercept Games. With Intercept now closing, the future of updating the game remains uncertain.
Roll7, a studio with roots dating back to 2008, achieved acclaim with titles like OlliOlli and Not A Hero before being acquired by Take-Two in 2021. The studio’s co-founders emphasized a desire for stability and creative freedom when deciding to join the larger company, but the recent layoffs indicate a shift in priorities as Take-Two gears up for the highly anticipated release of Grand Theft Auto VI.
The closure of these studios represents a broader trend in the gaming industry, where independent developers seek partnerships with larger publishers for financial security. Despite the challenges faced by Intercept Games and Roll7, the impact on the gaming community and the creative landscape remains to be seen.