Australia’s last remaining AAA game studio has closed, according to reports. Games and culture magazine Kotaku says Canberra-based 2K Australia studios will close permanently and all staff at the studio will lose their jobs.
2K Australia’s latest blockbuster game title is Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel, the third major game in the series that chronologically sits between the earlier Borderlands 1 and 2. This introduced the mayhem and oxygen resource requirements of a moon-based low-gravity FPS to the series. The game has generally been well received, and the recent Claptastic Voyage story pack DLC is said to be a lot of fun. Previously, 2K Australia has played a major role in the development of the BioShock series and The Bureau: XCOM Declassified as part of Irrational Games.
It is said that operating costs were at the heart of the decision to close the studio. An earlier initiative to move to Melbourne was said to have resulted in the departure of several key staff, but did not help Australia’s cause. An official statement from 2K Games, provided by Kotaku and confirming the closure, stated:
“We can confirm that we have taken steps to begin the studio closure process for 2K Australia to better manage ongoing development costs while improving the close working of our creative teams. We are extremely grateful for the team’s valuable contribution to numerous 2K projects and are working with affected staff to explore possible relocation opportunities.”
There is no information on what work 2K’s Canberra studio is currently doing or was working on during the closure.
