Capcom Studio 8 shut down?

Former employee says publisher has closed American development house responsible for Maximo series, Final Fight: Streetwise.

A former Capcom employee told GameSpot today that the publisher has closed its US development house Capcom Studio 8, laying off around 20 people in the process.

The studio had recently finished work on Final Fight: Streetwise and "was trying to figure out what to work on next" when the news came, according to GameSpot's source. While Streetwise was critically lambasted upon release, the source said there were no overt indications that the employees' jobs and the studio itself were in jeopardy, "aside from a general, vague feeling of 'things are going poorly.'"

Prior to taking on Streetwise, the studio handled the development of two better-reviewed efforts, the 2002 PlayStation 2 action title Maximo: Ghosts to Glory and its 2004 sequel, Maximo vs. Army of Zin. It seems gamers holding out hope for a third entry in that series can stop carrying the torch. When asked if the layoffs meant the Maximo series was dead and gone, the source said, "Seems like that was already true and is just true moreso now."

A Capcom representative would not confirm or deny the studio's closure, saying only "Capcom does not comment on day-to-day operations."

36 Comments

  • vu12345678

    Posted Oct 12, 2006 11:00 am PT

    Maximo was a good series and Final Fights was pretty good for a beat em up. It sucks people don't like old school games anymore.

  • Platyphyllum

    Posted May 6, 2006 5:36 am PT

    Does this mean that they won't be selling anymore copies of Maximo Ghosts to Glory? I have the sequel but I don't have the first one. Anyway, I really feel bad that the Maximo franchise MIGHT have to shut down but I guess this is what happens when you make bad games that are rated 3.3 which is called Final Fight: Streetwise. I just don't like the fact that Maximo might never be seen in the future again.

  • Prince_Pixel

    Posted Mar 25, 2006 3:51 pm PT

    The rights to Street Fighter belong to Capcom USA, so maybe there will be no Street Fighter IV (4). Only remakes and rehashes, it is pretty much over. What do you have to say about that?

  • SavoyPrime

    Posted Mar 23, 2006 2:14 pm PT

    It always sucks when people lose their jobs.

  • MrPuzzlez

    Posted Mar 23, 2006 11:31 am PT

    Final Fight: Streetwise wasn't even Final Fight. It was nothing but a toned down GTA with even more swearing!

  • MrPuzzlez

    Posted Mar 23, 2006 11:30 am PT

    I agree with skyvader. And when they make 2D games, they should stop being lazy and not do mirror images! It is 2006! Mirror images were played out in the 1980s. Game companies can do MUCH better than that!

  • Loutronz

    Posted Mar 23, 2006 10:56 am PT

    No more Maximo?
    That's terrible!

  • snarple_basic

    Posted Mar 23, 2006 10:24 am PT

    Maximo was good it would have been better if the camera controlled better and it was very hard but the game was fun, im soon going to play the 2nd game just pick it up at a toys r us clearence for 10 bucks. I hope they make more.

  • LucaBlight24

    Posted Mar 23, 2006 10:16 am PT

    studio 8 didnt make re4 that studio 4 but this really sucks

  • luis7989_7

    Posted Mar 23, 2006 9:43 am PT

    what the hell !!! capcom studio 8 made resident evil 4 !!!! goodness!

  • K1LLSWITCH

    Posted Mar 23, 2006 5:44 am PT

    If Capcom made Resident Evil: Outbreak better, preferably headset compatibility, I feel there wouldn't be any problems with the company. I feel bad for the people that worked at Capcom Studio 8, but someone there should of been kicked in the gonads for making final fight. I loved the coin-op for the arcades but I never played the console version. I had a feeling that it sucked. The graphics were horrible, and watching the gameplay footage here on Gamespot, it seemed that the gameplay wasn't there either. It just turned me off. Hopefully the company will get there situation straightened out.

  • naruto82us

    Posted Mar 23, 2006 5:12 am PT

    Sure not,, Can't believe that!!

  • Psycho_

    Posted Mar 23, 2006 5:09 am PT

    Phiuu... Almost thought that CAPCOM will be shuted down. I almost got a heart attack.

  • KiLLer_ba

    Posted Mar 23, 2006 12:31 am PT

    That sucks for the peeps to work there, but bringing Final Fight back was a bad decision.

  • ghostadv

    Posted Mar 22, 2006 8:11 pm PT

    Dang, and I liked Maximo vs AoZ

  • ZantetsukenEX

    Posted Mar 22, 2006 5:57 pm PT

    capcom now can save money to make better games.

  • ZantetsukenEX

    Posted Mar 22, 2006 5:56 pm PT

    capcom now can save money to make better games.

  • dounowhatiam

    Posted Mar 22, 2006 5:00 pm PT

    hmm i like final fight serise but a carp 3d urban one no al pass even giveing it a look.
    i could carless they made no games on any nintendo platforms so bye bye
    studio8 rest in piece

  • Tranceplant

    Posted Mar 22, 2006 5:00 pm PT

    Well, that really sucks for these employees... Like everybody says.. Maximo was great but Streetwise wasn't good. Ruined a good franchise...

  • townsenda1

    Posted Mar 22, 2006 4:38 pm PT

    Say it isn't so.

  • NeokVash19

    Posted Mar 22, 2006 3:56 pm PT

    That really sucks for them........the only good games they came up with were the maximo series and that was it......hmmm..oh well......looks like they're going to have to look for another job around.....too bad for them

  • fmcuk

    Posted Mar 22, 2006 3:37 pm PT

    They didn't do anything for Nintendo platforms, so IDGAS about it.

  • miggidy24

    Posted Mar 22, 2006 3:17 pm PT

    skyvader,

    I couldn't agree with you more.
    It's not just gamers but developers are too enamored with polygons.
    There was nothing wrong with 2D sprites. I understand the move to polygons but that doesn't mean they should've abandoned 2D altogether.

    The sad thing here is that the entire fault doesn't rest on Studio 8.
    You gotta fire the head honcho who decided on taking the Final Fight series into 3D, as well!.... Oh when will naive developers and publishers ever learn? How many crappy 3D Castlevanias must there be before Konami finally realizes that certain franchises just can't cut it in 3D?....

  • John_of_Fire

    Posted Mar 22, 2006 3:04 pm PT

    Wow you do one bad game out of three and people want to stone you for it.

    They brought Ghosts and Goblins to 3d well, I guess they thought they could do the same for Final Fight. O'well it shouldn't be too hard for them to find jobs.

  • ultimate_zero

    Posted Mar 22, 2006 2:52 pm PT

    Thats To bad, they should of came up with better ideas, they are capable

  • dwmorrow

    Posted Mar 22, 2006 2:47 pm PT

    I liked Maximo, but everyone knew FF: Streetwise was going to be a dud. I mean, look at the logo and the stupid way they wrote "Streetwise" like it's supposed to be graffiti. LAME. The sooner this whole "urban" theme in video games goes away, the better.

  • Kuruption84

    Posted Mar 22, 2006 2:47 pm PT

    I wonder why?

  • skyvader

    Posted Mar 22, 2006 2:44 pm PT

    Are developers affraid to release some 2D goodness? I liked the original final fight and thought a sequal would be great. They should have made it old school though. Ever since the PS1 everything has been moved to 3D. Bring back the 2D quality Capcom was successful for. Or at least tone down all the bad camera angles by not making the entire game into a 3rd person perspective.

  • jiggster147

    Posted Mar 22, 2006 2:34 pm PT

    Maybe tremo, but they're still people...and Maximo really wasn't that bad

  • tremo01

    Posted Mar 22, 2006 2:27 pm PT

    Final Fight was an insult to any fans of the first Final Fight.... I'm happy Studio 8 dead.

  • solid_sticz

    Posted Mar 22, 2006 2:06 pm PT

    maximo was a bad a$$ game

  • Robio_basic

    Posted Mar 22, 2006 2:00 pm PT

    If all they did was get closed down for making Final Fight Street then they got off light. They deserved to be beaten with a stick and given the mother of all wedgies.

  • MadGamer132

    Posted Mar 22, 2006 2:00 pm PT

    don't blame them on their recent game, i always don't know if is true on not.

  • buildar

    Posted Mar 22, 2006 1:57 pm PT

    Yeah the maximo games were great. But they dropped the ball on Final Fight: Streetwise.

  • frankeyser

    Posted Mar 22, 2006 1:55 pm PT

    Final Fight: Streetwise!!!
    they deserved to get fired...
    the maximo games where great though.

  • Donkeljohn Site moderator

    Posted Mar 22, 2006 1:54 pm PT

    Too bad for the developers. Unfortunately, none of the games were especially great.

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