Vancouver-based studio shut down by owner Disney Interactive Studios following completion of Tron: Evolution.
Just hours after the imminent closure of Activision's Bizarre Creations was made official, another studio's shutdown has been revealed. This afternoon, Disney Interactive Studios confirmed to GameSpot that its Canadian studio Propaganda Games is no more.
"Disney Interactive Studios confirms the closure of its Vancouver-based internal game development studio, Propaganda Games," the company said in a brief statement. "The studio has completed all work associated with its most recent project." The project in question was Tron: Evolution, the game tie-in to the film Tron: Legacy, which underperformed at the box office and with critics. The game itself fared better with reviewers.
Propaganda's closure brings the studio's short history to an end. It was formed in 2005 by Disney and several former EA developers as a smaller shop of 30. However, the company expanded when work on its first project, Turok, ramped up, only to have its payroll slashed in early 2009. Last October saw more staff cuts when the studio's next project, the action role-playing game Pirates of the Caribbean: Armada of the Damned, was abruptly canceled.
Just heard this news.. That sucks. I've really been having a blast with the Tron Evolution Multiplayer on PC. Was really kinda looking forward to some new maps and a patch or 2... Better get my lightcycle gaming in now. Who knows how long the multiplayer will last....
That is a shame, I had heard Tron Evolution was a good game too being very much like Prince of Persia.
I've said it so many times: The only good thing about Disney is Pixar. Constantly, all of their decisions are wreak-less and absurdly pathetic, let alone the majority of their creations.
that's too bad. I've heard good things about the Tron game. And was hoping they'd get to make another one with some of the issues fixed.
Well if you expand beyond your sustainability, and make mostly meh games, it's not surprising.
Dumb Disney, they should make an original IP instead of a movie-tie in...I'm guessing no one play games in Disney. Because if they do, they'll know that game from a movie are much more riskier than an original IP.
Idiots.... Absolute idiots. Could have made a great POC game, but had to stop work on it for a dumb movie tie-in. What's the point? Might as well spawn a new franchise with great promise for sequels, But noooo, the suits know better.
And to think Disney shut down the developer of Pirates of the Caribbean: Armada of the Damned & kept this studio open, only to have it shut down anyway.
Tron: Legacy didn't underperform at the box office...It actually did well... >>>>>>> End of Line
That Pirates of the Caribbean game was pretty high on my most wanted list this year too:(, It really did look like it could be good.
@afunyun, Well if you consider the company that housed & funded this movie being the 'great' Disney, you can most certainly be assured that the bar is probably set high in their mind's eye as to what they probably feel the movie should have done. As for the game & Propaganda studio, it is kinda effed up how Disney did them and as others have mentioned I guess Disney Interactive just didn't feel the need to put the effort into running gaming division like they should have. Clearly, this is just another example of a non-gaming company trying to stretch itself to thin in getting into the gaming industry by opening studios just to get more revenues. Problem is they usually don't take the time and effort to actually see to it that the company actually succeeds. Here's to hoping everyone will eventually get back on there feet swiftly.
@Darkman2007 Those were all really good games!!! The only other movie game that I remember being good was Toy Story 3, but I am not sure what the time difference was for the game and movie.
@MERGATROYDER The COD franchise is going to hit a serious speed bump any time soon unless they actually change something to their games. They're practically all the same. I'd recommend getting with Rockstar.. They don't push a game out every year - they take their time. And it shows.
Being a game designer is a risky business, and they willingly stepped into this industry. Unless your the best of the best, or just incredibly lucky, don't expect to be working for the same company for the rest of your life. Besides, Propaganda is mediocre at best. I'm sure Disney would have been more compelled to hold onto them if they had created a better product. In the end, this is the world we live in, and most of these corporations exist solely to turn a profit from it. If they want to, they'll throw you in the gutter just to make a quick buck. Get used to it.
@progamemania I know how you feel man. It sucks, but in order for innovation and new teams of people to form, companies like this have to close...
@Gaoth Harmonix is not shut down, they actually bought their independence again. Red Octane however was a casualty of Activision last year as they shut them down after getting the only thing they were interested in from them - the Guitar Hero franchise.
the problem with most movie based games, is that they are rushed to be launched alongside the movie, which usually leads to the game being a rushed, mediocre game, or possibly even just complete garbage. if you look at the movie games that were actually good, like Aladdin ,Lion King or Goldeneye , most of them were released months or even a year or 2 after the movie. thats because the developer took their time , didn't rush the game , and made a polished product that was actually fun to play sadly most publishers fail to see that.....
Sucky news. Best of luck to the developers. Try to get with Infinity Ward or Treyarch. Guaranteed success!
Turok was awesome. Everyone I know enjoyed it. What does Disney do with this? Have them put out crappy movie games, then shut them down. *sarcastic applause* Idiots.
This news doesn't sound that bad other then fate of the ex-employees. I think the Brizzare Creation news was more heavy hitted because of the time in the industry compared to this development team. I'm more worried about the Project Gotham Racing series and if Activision is going to keep (or destory) the IP or not, othern than what's going to happen to Turok or Tron. Good luck to the former staff at how defunct Propaganda games.
They should either move to Montreal where eidos and ubi are at or move to edmonton where bioware is at.
This sucks Disney, POTC Armada of the Damned was canceled and now this. Good lucky getting new jobs Propaganda Games.
@Zero5000X Yeah umm, respected journalists aren't the ones buying the tickets. So if mom and pop didn't like it, that means most of the audience didn't like it, which means that it "underperformed". Sorry, them's the breaks.
What's GameSpot talking about? Tron Legacy did well and was a great movie. Edit: Oh, they're talking about Metacritic which takes every mom and pop critic into account. I was just going by respected journalists.
marvel may be a publishing company, but, i would be pretty scared if i were them after looking at this news. disney's business practices are notorious for basically working their companies to death, and when the wilted husk of that company is unusable, they either sell it, or close it.
Darn... I was hoping they would announce that they were still working on PotC: AotD. But that's out of the question now.
Another B-Team developer closes it's doors after making a few mediocre games. People don't want shovelware, gamers aren't as stupid as online shooter's communities would lead you to believe.
@daabulls23 it does matter, since that means many other millions spent for marketing that are not on domestic budget. I didn't say the movie was a failure, but it's true that it underperfomed since Disney was expectin a hit, while they're just gonna pay the bills and make some little money on top. And if you think that marketing isn't as expensive as making the movie, you're wrong.
I am particularly disturbed by all these closers by mega-publishers. It sends the message that if you can produce a blockbuster title that will sell millions, you WILL BE closed. This will have a chilling effect on how willing developers are at trying new IP. We as gamers are going to lose out in the near future until a new wave of indie companies start making great games. I just hope when they do, they have the balls not to get bought out by some company just to make a lot of money now. I only see this as a bad sign. But on the positive front, we can look forward to Big Game Hunter 15 and COD: Modern Warfare 6. Only the most profitable shall survive!
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