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EA closes Japan studio

Internal development studio to go as part of corporate restructuring.

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EA's Japanese studio will soon be closing its doors after three years, having produced one game, Theme Park DS, with two more Nintendo DS games in the works.

An EA spokesperson confirmed a 1Up report that the studio was to close, with the reason being that the company would be consolidating its Japanese development team. The spokesperson said, "We're moving it under our EA Partners model, focusing on working with external Japanese developers."

The studio originally opened three years ago, and it was due to release Theme Park DS in Japan on March 15.

The EA spokesperson confirmed that Theme Park DS would still be released on schedule, adding, "It's important to note that the development that was underway in Japan for the three products for the DS--Theme Park DS, Sim City DS, and Dragon Zakura DS--continues, so those titles don't go away. They're still very much part of our release plans."

Dragon Zakura is a "very Japan-focused game," based on a Japanese TV drama series and a manga of the same name, whereas Theme Park DS and Sim City DS are localisations of popular Western franchises for the handheld.

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