Embracer could soon be closing Free Radical Design.
As reported by Video Games Chronicle, this is the latest step in Embracer’s effort at restructuring their business, after a major business deal fell through.
To be clear, it hasn’t been decided yet that Free Radical will be shut down. UK law requires Embracer, through Free Radical owning company Plaion, to consult with employees for a minimum of 30 days. They are required to talk with these employees to avoid layoffs, possibly to place them elsewhere in the company.
However, Video Games Chronicle have also confirmed that some former employees have already confirmed their status on LinkedIn, and are looking for new jobs. At least 15 people have served such notice, working different positions in the studio, such as lead game designer, senior artist, game designer, and IT manager.
The original Free Radical Design was founded in 1999 by four alumni from Rare; David Doak, Steve Ellis, Karl Hilton, Graeme Norgate, Lee Ray and James Cunliffe. After working on Rare FPS classics GoldenEye 007 and Perfect Dark, they decided to go off on their own, and made their own mark in the industry with the TimeSplitters franchise.
In 2014, Free Radical officially closed, as a result of the bankruptcy of its then-owner company Crytek. Because of the UK law cited above, all the remaining Free Radical developers were absorbed into Dambuster Studios.
So the Free Radical Design studio that we are talking about now is not the original studio from 1999. In fact, this is a completely new company, brought back by some of the original developers, including David Doak and Steve Ellis. They were revived under Embracer with the express purpose of bringing back TimeSplitters, and this is really what this story should be all about.
Free Radical faltered in evolving from what they built on TimeSplitters, releasing a failed Halo competitor called Haze, and being involved in some cancelled projects that led to bankruptcy.
In the years after TimeSplitters Future Perfect, demand for a new TimeSplitters game grew, but has never been satisfied to this day. Even under Crytek, Free Radical hoped they could make a TimeSplitters 4, but they simply never got around to it. Similarly, some Free Radical staff revealed after it was closed that they were also working on a TimeSplitters 2 HD remake. Obviously, that also never got completed, But, devs managed to squeeze in its first two levels in as an Easter egg, in Dambusters’ release of Homefront: The Revolution.
Some fans got permission to make their own TimeSplitters mod, called TimeSplitters Rewind. This project began in 2012, and the studio enthusiastically reported great progress until 2021, when they claimed it had been going through its 2nd round of QA.
Before they all went under Embracer, THQ Nordic AB revealed plans to revive TimeSplitters after acquiring the IP in 2018. Free Radical was brought back for the express purpose of making a new TimeSplitters game.
As of right now, it isn’t clear if Embracer will still move forward with these plans, or if they will go sell off the TimeSplitters IP again. While TimeSplitters fans may feel jilted once again, for now we express our best wishes to the staff at Free Radical, and hope those who will be laid off can soon find new jobs in the industry again.
