LogInThe earlier news of shutting down Roll7 and Intercept Games is just the tip of the iceberg.
At the beginning of May, news emerged that Take-Two Interactive planned to shut down two studios as part of significant layoffs. The impacted studios are London-based Roll7, creators of OlliOlli World and Rollerdrome, and Seattle-based Intercept Games, known for Kerbal Space Program 2. Both studios were previously under Take-Two's indie label, Private Division. News has reported that Take-Two is planning to either sell off or shut down the label.
According to a recent report by IGN, employees of Private Division were warned of impending layoffs in February. By April's end, the company announced the discontinuation of support for the Private Division, which means almost all the employees were laid off around that time.
Intercept Games
Currently, only a small team is left to oversee the remaining games under the Private Division's publishing contracts. It's also reported that Take-Two has pulled out of two Private Division publishing deals, one with Bloober Team and another, reportedly with Ghostrunner's One More Level.
When Rebekah Valentine from IGN reached out to insiders for their insights, one source was quoted as saying:
"The people at Private Division were amazing, talented, passionate individuals who loved what they did and also really cared about each other as a team and as people," one person said. "We loved our projects, we worked hard, and we fostered a great environment internally. I would love to work with any of them again. The pain point was always Take-Two and associated leadership forcing our hand. The whole layoff situation proved what we already felt. Take-Two could not care less about its employees."
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