this-is-vegas posts

A title that was first announced well over two years ago but has gone off the radar for much of that time may have finally come to its end. Computer and Video Games is reporting via a "cast iron source close to the project" that This is Vegas, the open world action game from developer Surreal Software, has been canceled by publisher Warner Bros. Interactive.

The game was developed under Surreal's original owner Midway and was shown in playable form at Midway's last major press event in 2008 and also at E3 the same year. The game, where your character gambled, partied and generally had a good time in a highly fictional version of Las Vegas, became part of Warner Bros. Interactive when the publisher purchased Surreal Software following Midway's collapse in 2009. Warner Bros. Interactive said This is Vegas was still in production when asked by IGN about its status in August 2009.

However, Computer and Video Games reports that Surreal Software was very quietly shut down last June and that the game, which the source said had already cost over $40 million to develop by Midway, was canceled along with the studio. We've emailed' Warner Bros. Interactive for comment.

If this was The Bachelor, these folks would not be getting roses. Shacknews is reporting that a total of 25 employees have been let go across all three of Warner Bros. Interactive's Seattle area development studios: Monolith (F.E.A.R. series) Surreal Software (the upcoming This is Vegas) and Snowblind Studios. The article claims that all three studios still have just over 400 employees in total.

In an official statement, Warner Bros. Interactive has admitted to some layoffs without confirming Shacknews' specific numbers, saying, "Unfortunately, we had a few too many resources in certain functions and some positions were eliminated in this process." The publisher would also not comment on the current status of This is Vegas which was the project that Surreal Software was working on for its former owner Midway before Warner Bros. bought the developer in the summer of 2009.

It's possible that you can say "good bye" to the logo above this post. As of today Midway is no longer an actual company as most of its assets and IP are now officially under the Warner Bros. Interactive label. Indeed the Chicago-based Midway development studio has apparently been renamed Warner Brothers Games - Chicago according to a Twitter message from one of the game's development team members.

As we have reported before, Warner Bros bought most of Midway in late June for $33 million. That price includes two of Midway's four internal development teams; Chicago, home of the Mortal Kombat fighting game franchise (and yes, work is underway on the next game in the series), and Seattle where the open world action game This is Vegas was in development (its current status is unknown). Two other former Midway studios, one in San Diego and the other in the UK, have less than two months to find new owners or they will be shut down. It's currently unknown if the Midway name will be kept as a brand under Warner Bros. but at the moment that seems unlikely.

Update: Our sister site Joystiq reports that a Midway spokesperson admitted that while Warner Bros. owns the Midway name and trademarks, " . . to say the name is dead, it's silly but, ya know, it's premature -- the company Midway Games, Inc. still exists." Technically he is correct because the two studios not bought by Warner Bros. are still in operation but again they will shut down in less than two months if a buyer or buyers are not found for them.

After losing its shirt, pants and nearly its underpants for years (financially speaking of course) Midway's is now selling off at least part of their company. Today the company announced that Warner Bros. Entertainment has entered a "asset purchase agreement" with Midway to the tune of $33 million.

That price will nab Warner Bros. quite a few of Midway's US assets. That includes the company's Chicago and Seattle based development studios and the Mortal Kombat fighting game franchise. However it does not include Midway's San Diego studio nor its UK based studio (where the recently released Wheelman game was made). The price is basically a "starting bid" for Warner Bros. Other companies now have 30 days to offer up any competing bids.

Midway continues to feel the effects of its recent declaration of bankruptcy. The game publisher is going though the motions in bankruptcy court and GamePolitics reports that the company's current majority shareholder Mark Thomas made a filing to the court that sheds a little more light on what might be going on with Midway.

While much of the document has been redacted Thomas claims that Midway will be out of money by late June and there are no games in the pipeline that will be released before that date (Midway got Wheelman out the door with the help of Ubisoft late in March). That may mean the end for This is Vegas, the long-in-development open world action game from Midway internal developer Surreal Software.

Midway's financial problems are causing the once might game publisher to think about selling off its biggest IP; the Mortal Kombat fighting game franchise. In court documents found by NetDockets, the company is offering " 29 eligible employees" bonuses if certain milestones are met

One of those milestones has been met by selling the publishing and distribution for Wheelman to Ubisoft. But Midway is also offering bonuses if they can sell off the Mortal Kombat franchise or submit plans to reorganize or even liquidate Midway. If all the milestones are met, Midway's lucky 29 employees will share in a total bonus package of $3,755,000. We wonder how the rest of Midway's employees and the company's creditors feel about that. Oh, and Variety reports that an unnamed game designer for Midway (who is almost certainly Mortal Kombat co-creator Ed Boon) is getting slightly over $1 milliion in bonuses for the past six months.

[Via Joystiq]

Midway's announcement this week that it was going into Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection may have some of the publisher's upcoming games going to new publishers as a way to continue operations. Kotaku is reporting rumors that Wheelman, the long-in-development driving action game, could be headed over to Ubisoft as a result of the Midway bankruptcy. Neither Midway nor Ubisoft will officially comment on these rumors.

Meanwhile, what about the Unreal/Unreal Tournament shooter franchise from Epic Games? The developer signed a long-term deal with Midway to publish both older and new games in the series, including an already announced expansion pack for Unreal Tournament III. Will Epic be forced to look for another publisher because of Midway's financial difficulties? Big Download contacted Epic Games' VP Mark Rein but he responded with a short and simple "No comment" to our inquires about the matter.

Midway also has This is Vegas from their Seattle-based dev company Surreal Software in the works and before their bankruptcy announcement they announced plans for a new Mortal Kombat game which presumably would be developed at their home office in Chicago. Midway also supposedly has two other secret games in development for a 2010 release. Meanwhile GamePolitics has posted up a list of all the creditors Midway currently owes money to as part of the company's Chapter 11 reorganization.

In a move that was highly expected, financially troubled publisher Midway has announced that it has decided to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. The company has been under massive economic pressure for some time and today's move was called the "....next logical step in an ongoing process to address our capital structure."

Midway will continue to run its operations as usual through the Chapter 11 process. The company did not announce any layoffs today and it's not known how this new move will affect their two announced upcoming games, the action driving game Wheelman and the open world action game This is Vegas.

Yesterday we started our look at the PC games of 2009 with a ton of various upcoming action and FPS titles. But there are so many of these type of games due out in the next 12 months that we had to split that preview up into two parts. This entry not only contains a number of traditional action titles but also has some fighting games and flying action game titles as well.

Check back on Monday as we will next take a look at the various strategy-RTS based games due out in the next year.

Click on the picture above to read more on the 2009 PC Game Preview: Action-FPS Titles Part 2