Insomniac opens North Carolina studio

Insomniac Games can prepare for a few more sleepless nights. The Ratchet & Clank developer announced today that it will be birthing the first offshoot studio in the company's 14-year history.

By January, Insomniac expects to go bicoastal, opening up a North Carolina shop to complement its current California-based operation. The new studio will put down roots in the Raleigh-Durham area, and "will focus both on developing current and new intellectual properties."

According to Insomniac founder and CEO Ted Price, "Our goal with the North Carolina studio is to blend our experience and proven track record with the tenacity of a start-up venture. Expanding to Raleigh-Durham also allows us to maintain an ideal size in Burbank while offering an attractive alternative for developers wishing to live on the East Coast."

The new Insomniac studio will feed into an existing talent pool in the area. North Carolina is already home to a number of developers, including Epic Games, Vicious Cycle, Red Storm Entertainment, Merscom, and the US branch of Funcom.

At the North Carolina studio, an expected team of 25-30 developers will answer to Insomniac's current art director Chris Dezern and gameplay lead Shaun McCabe. Dezern will serve as studio director, and McCabe will assume the role of production director. Both developers will finish up work on Resistance 2 before the new studio opens.