A Little Bit:
The game developer Free Radical is down… and out. The company door locks were changed so employees were unable to get access to their former work premises. Instead, they were told to report to an offsite location (a hotel meeting room) for a (de)briefing and a “Thanks for all your help, and goodbye” talk.
Kotaku reports a follow-up post on the subject.
While it is not uncommon for game studios to shut down, and there are certainly plenty of reasons for it (lack of funding, lack of interest, loss of distribution, etc.), more well-known developers may be heading for the chopping block as the economy continues to worsen and/or concepts collapse into obscurity. Earlier this year, Flagship Studios closed down, with Namco still running the game servers until early next year (and despite plenty of copies of Hellgate: London still being sold at full retail at Best Buy).
