Midway has announced major cuts in its workforce and games portfolio in the face of financial problems.
The primary asset to be hacked from the company is Midway Austin, the studio behind Blacksite: Area 51. The studio is set to close its doors.
Midway Austin personnel will not be the only ones to lose their jobs, however. The company is laying off 25% of its staff in total.
The publisher also says it will be 'suspending' development on several of its "non-core" titles. The company hasn't said which titles these will be. They were planned for release in 2009 and 2010. It seems fairly safe to say that we shouldn't expect any innovative new intellectual property from Midway in the next couple of years.
“The cost-reduction measures are vital for us to rationalize our operations and provide the resources necessary for our core properties to succeed”, said Matt Booty, president and CEO of Midway. “These initiatives, along with the other steps we have taken this year, are a response to the specific challenges we are facing at Midway, many of which have been amplified by the current economic conditions.”
Midway has been struggling of late. The 87% majority share held by media mogul Sumner Redstone was recently sold to investor Mark Thomas for a modest $100,000, along with a debt of $70 million.
That followed a threat of de-listing from the New York Stock Exchange thanks to the publisher's paltry share price.
While Midway's cutbacks aren't just down to the current economic downturn, it isn't the only games company cutting costs in the face of recession. Electronic Arts has recently taken steps to reduce its outgoings and could be looking to further reduce spending.
The primary asset to be hacked from the company is Midway Austin, the studio behind Blacksite: Area 51. The studio is set to close its doors.
Midway Austin personnel will not be the only ones to lose their jobs, however. The company is laying off 25% of its staff in total.
The publisher also says it will be 'suspending' development on several of its "non-core" titles. The company hasn't said which titles these will be. They were planned for release in 2009 and 2010. It seems fairly safe to say that we shouldn't expect any innovative new intellectual property from Midway in the next couple of years.
“The cost-reduction measures are vital for us to rationalize our operations and provide the resources necessary for our core properties to succeed”, said Matt Booty, president and CEO of Midway. “These initiatives, along with the other steps we have taken this year, are a response to the specific challenges we are facing at Midway, many of which have been amplified by the current economic conditions.”
Midway has been struggling of late. The 87% majority share held by media mogul Sumner Redstone was recently sold to investor Mark Thomas for a modest $100,000, along with a debt of $70 million.
That followed a threat of de-listing from the New York Stock Exchange thanks to the publisher's paltry share price.
While Midway's cutbacks aren't just down to the current economic downturn, it isn't the only games company cutting costs in the face of recession. Electronic Arts has recently taken steps to reduce its outgoings and could be looking to further reduce spending.
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Comments
SuperSaiyan4 17 Dec 2008 12:03
1/3
I think both Atari and Midway are the worst inhouse developers and publishers and have been for a very long time they have had only flops don't these developers learn anything??
Joji 17 Dec 2008 14:50
2/3
Midway had some good properties, but used them badly. Such a shame to see the go under.
I feel they banked too much upon Mortal Kombat for a start, when they could have been pushing out more Ready to Rumble (a game that should have launched around the Wii, but is now on the way too late for them), redone Spy Hunter (a game that needed more than just driving/ shooting sections).
I do think it was hard for them to transfer their arcade IP into modern console games. They made a good few average games, maybe because they are stuck in their arcade quick fix mindset.
I feel they banked too much upon Mortal Kombat for a start, when they could have been pushing out more Ready to Rumble (a game that should have launched around the Wii, but is now on the way too late for them), redone Spy Hunter (a game that needed more than just driving/ shooting sections).
I do think it was hard for them to transfer their arcade IP into modern console games. They made a good few average games, maybe because they are stuck in their arcade quick fix mindset.
SuperSaiyan4 18 Dec 2008 08:59
3/3
Mortal Kombat and Terminator games could have been soo much better but like Sega they ruined them by making big changes that effected the originality and I am comparing Sonic in this case the originals and MK games like the original 1 and 2.