TimeSplitters studio Free Radical Design seems to have shut down, as team members have begun mourning its closure on social media.
Those who head to the developer’s website are being met with an error that simply says, “404 Company Not Found” with an especially saddening frowny face. No other pages on the site are accessible at the time of this story's publication. It’s a foreboding message that signals the worst, but the real nails in the coffin are the many members from the team who have taken to social media to bid farewell to the studio.
“So long Free Radical Design, my first experience in the Games Industry and my first experience being made redundant. It definitely had its ups and downs but I can say for sure that the team I worked with were fantastic, and I wish them all the best! I'll miss you all,” Senior Gameplay Programmer Adam Sims said in a LinkedIn post.
“Free Radical Design was a hub of creativity, but sadly, we join an ever-growing list of casualties in a broken industry where entire studios are treated as replaceable cogs in a soulless machine fixated on nothing but share prices,” Quality Assurance Manager Kevin Ellis added.
Ellis continued: “To all who lent their skills, dedication and creativity, you are the heartbeat of Free Radical Design. As we part ways, I'm confident your talents will persist in shaping gaming's trajectory.”
Free Radical’s demise is, unfortunately, anything but a surprise. In a year plagued with waves of layoffs, the studio’s parent company, Embracer Group, contributed 904 staff layoffs as of mid-November 2023. Its decision to let go team members follows the collapse of a $2 billion deal with the Saudi government-funded Savvy Games Group earlier this year. Embracer announced it entered an agreement to purchase the rights to The Lord of the Rings universe in August 2022.
A VGC report that the TimeSplitters studio was facing shutdown in December emerged only a few weeks ago.
“As our time at Free Radical Design comes to an end I want to say that it has been an honour to work with this design team,” Lead Game Designer George Beard said. “They are young, intelligent and hungry designers (and Tech Designers) that I would encourage anyone hiring to take an interest in them.”
Others, such as Audio Designer Samuel Hollywood-Summers shared their thoughts on LinkedIn. Senior Artist Mark Normington was among those impacted, with his post on the matter saying that Embracer’s layoffs impacted more than 80 Free Radical developers.
Free Radical has a history that dates back to the ‘90s, with some of its breakout titles being the original TimeSplitters and its sequel, TimeSplitters 2. It was closed in 2014 and eventually revived in 2021, just more than two years ago. A new TimeSplitters was in the works, but following today's news, its status is unknown.
Michael Cripe is a freelance contributor with IGN. He started writing in the industry in 2017 and is best known for his work at outlets such as The Pitch, The Escapist, OnlySP, and Gameranx.
Be sure to give him a follow on Twitter @MikeCripe.
