Confirmed: Microsoft closing Ensemble

[InsaneNutter]

Confirmation has come fast in regard to rumors surfacing earlier today that Microsoft would be closing its internal developer Ensemble Studios upon the completion of sci-fi real-time strategy game Halo Wars. In a statement issued today, Microsoft confirmed that Ensemble will be shut down once the Xbox 360-exclusive RTS set in the best-selling Halo franchise ships out early next year.

"The team at Ensemble has made invaluable contributions to the games industry with their Age of Empires and Age of Mythology games and with the highly anticipated release of Halo Wars," the publisher said in a statement. "This decision does not reflect at all on Ensemble’s talent or the quality of Halo Wars--in fact, many people who have had a chance to test drive Halo Wars agree that it is on track to being a fantastic game."

Though Microsoft will close the studio, Ensemble has plans to soldier on. As part of today's statement, Microsoft said that Ensemble's "leadership team" will form a new development house and has already entered into an agreement with the publisher to continue supporting Halo Wars post-launch, "as well as work on other projects with Microsoft Game Studios."

Commenting on the reason for the closure, Microsoft said, "This was a fiscally rooted decision that keeps MGS on its growth path. While the decision to dissolve Ensemble was not an easy one, Microsoft is working to place as many Ensemble employees who do not move to the newly formed studio into open positions within Microsoft as possible."

As noted earlier today, the Age of Empires brand has sold more than 20 million units since the first installment debuted on the PC in 1997. According to the NPD Group, Age of Empires III for the PC has sold 1.15 million units in the US alone through July 2008, with The Warchiefs expansion tallying nearly 305,000 more. (The second expansion, Asian Dynasties, was developed by Rise of Nations creators Big Huge Games.)

Ensemble has been a Microsoft-owned studio since 2001.

Source

That's a shame, Age of Empires is one of my favourite games on PC, I hope this does not mean it’s the end for Age of Empires series.

 

[Slaz]

A shock to the many, many Age of Empires fans..

 

[Safinn]

What a joke. I don't understand why they are closing them down. What have they done wrong? I also hope AOE will carry on!

 

[InsaneNutter]

Not too sure, it says: "Ensemble's leadership team will form a new development house” maybe its a good way to cut costs by only keeping the best people? Hopefully more will be revealed, I want to see Age of Empires 4 someday.

I think Aoe 4 was planned and looked like it is supposed to be set early world war era.

 

[Trebor]

I think MS has lost the plot a little. They're either selling off some of their best studios (Bizzare Creations, Bungie kinda) or closing them down (FASA, Ensemble). What do they have left? They really need to think about what effect this is having on people and not just profit margins etc. Seems MS are moving further away from PC gaming and heading straight to console only games. Heck isn't Halo Wars for 360 only? Then why close Ensemble down if they're working on a product with guranteed sales, known IP what with the story, characters etc and releasing a game on the platform you're wanting to expand into? Like the rest have said, I just hope the new studio can work on AOE and release it on 360 as well as PC. If the games are only released on the 360 I will not be happy!

 

[elamre]

damn, it was my favorite game. especialy age of empires 2.

 

[Safinn]

InsaneNutter, that picture of AOE 4 looks amazing. Thats what i'm looking for in a statergy game, more modern combat. If this happenes it will 100% become a top game.

 

[InsaneNutter]

What do they have left?

Heck isn't Halo Wars for 360 only?

I just hope the new studio can work on AOE and release it on 360 as well as PC. If the games are only released on the 360 I will not be happy!

Microsoft have the IP so they can always develop it in house or get a new studio to do it, but i still don’t agree with closing Ensemble down... a new studio with different people could quite easy ruin Age of Empires.

Yes Halo Wars is 360 only, RTS on a console is a big no to me heck if they added support for a USB mouse I wouldn’t mind one bit, however they won’t do that, a joypad just don’t cut it for RTS games.

InsaneNutter, that picture of AOE 4 looks amazing. Thats what i'm looking for in a statergy game, more modern combat. If this happenes it will 100% become a top game.

I don’t mind combat in medieval times but I agree an Age of Empires game set around the 1900’s / World War 1 and 2 era would be amazing!

 

[InsaneNutter]

Ensemble co-founder Bruce Shelley has revealed that the staff of the studio which is closing down are absolutely shocked that this is happening. Shelley thought that the studio was immune to closure as many of their titles have done well and were profitable. However, it seems they did not fit in with the future plans of MS as an internal...

Ensemble Studios Closing: I have mentioned with regret the closing of several quality game studios over the past several years but I never considered that ES would join the list. Everyone at our studio was shocked, and I think remains very disappointed that this is going to happen. I believe we thought we were immune to shut-down talk because our published games have done so well and have been so profitable. Plus we felt we had built a really stable (low-turnover), talented, hard-working, and creative team, which is not easy to do. We thought we were among the best studios in the world, and that may be true, but we don’t fit in the future plans of MGS as an internal studio so we’re out.

A senior executive of MGS addressed the studio in early September and gave us the news. He did not go into a lot of detail about why, but basically the decision, as I understand it, was based on several major factors. First, they want to divert the headcount tied up in ES and the costs that are expected to be required to run ES for the next few years into other projects. Second, it sounded like it cost more to run ES on a per person basis than other first party studios (Rare, Lionhead, Forza, Flight Sim) putting us at a disadvantage. (Plus they avoid the expense of a new office that we were planning.) And third, games those studios are expected to deliver in the next few years are expected to be more strategic and profitable to the company than anything we would be finishing after Halo Wars.

You may recall that the mission for our studio from the start in 1995 has been to create great games and a great place to work. Overall we think we have built a studio consistent with that mission. But within the framework of a larger organization other stuff matters and perhaps has higher priorities, including costs of operation and overall strategic direction of the larger business. The new leadership of the game group at Microsoft has a new plan for making the game group consistently profitable, especially over the next few crucial years, and we are the odd group out.

We have had a week now to get over the shock and have begun the process of finding new work, considering relocating, etc. We have heard from many recruiters and other studios with openings. There may be opportunities for ES people in other MGS studios, including the new one in Redmond. Microsoft HR has begun the process of getting us information on what to expect as we leave the company. In the meantime, we still have uncompleted work to finish.

Halo Wars All Hands: In August we shut down work on everything non-Halo Wars related and now the entire studio is focused on finishing this game by the end of this year. Everyone in the studio has a job until Halo Wars is finished. There have been no layoffs and none are expected. We have received fantastic feedback on the game at a variety of game shows and events, and want to deliver on the promises we have made as our last hurrah. We want a great Halo Wars game to be the final tribute to everything that ES has come to mean to us and perhaps you as well, over the past 13 years.

Newco: Studio head Tony Goodman has a plan to start a new independent studio following the end of ES and a number of the existing ES employees have been offered a position in this company. He felt he had to get a plan for that in place, even though it will not being operating until after ES closes down, so that all employees can know where they stand and begin making plans for their futures. I believe the spirit and mission of ES will be carried forward in this new company if enough of the key leaders agree to take part, which I expect to happen. There has been no announcement about what the new studio will be working on when it gets going.

Fate of the Blog: This was a sort of special edition blog focused entirely on the news about the coming closure of Ensemble Studios. I expect to continue with more typical blogs in the coming months through the completion of Halo Wars and my employment with the company. I do not expect to be part of the new company formed after ES is shut down, so the blog will probably end at that point. It was intended to keep our gaming friends informed about our games and give you a look inside the life and processes of a game development studio. I hope you have found it interesting over the years.

Source

 

[preto]

microsoft sux omg they are like EA

cmps