Possibility Space, a video game studio that was founded by the creator of State of Decay, Jeff Strain, suddenly closed over reported internal media leaks that caused irreversible damage.
Strain told all of the studio's staff last week that Possibility Space, which was founded in 2021, will be shutting down immediately. In his email to employees, he specifically mentioned Ethan Gach, an investigative writer for Kotaku, as the first domino that led the studio to shut down.
Possibility Space Shuts Down
(Photo : Undead Labs / Screenshot taken from official website)
He noted that the journalist reached out to talk about the end of Crop Circle Games, which is a sister studio to Possibility Space under the Prytania Media label. This was one that Strain founded with his wife, Annie Delisi Strain, in 2021.
Strain said that he was surprised to see non-public information about Project Vonnegut being spread online. This was a reference for the work that was in development and he noted that the disclosure included details of their business and financial relationship and of internal discussions and confidential all company meetings, according to ReadWrite.
He added that seeing internal team members under a confidentiality agreement engage in such discussions was "shocking." He immediately flew to meet with the studio's publishing partners in person. There, they told him that they were unwilling to "invest the additional resources needed to complete the game."
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All employees of Possibility Space were subsequently fired, pursuant to labor laws in their jurisdictions. Strain also said that he had to hire a law firm to "oversee the wind-down of the studio" overall. The representatives of which would contact workers to talk about the studio's remaining obligations to them.
Despite the controversy that the situation has caused, Kotaku's article was not published. Crop Circle Games was closed in February and its employees were subsequently furloughed. Strain also said in his email that he would be stepping away from the game industry to focus on his family and care for his wife.
Alleged Internal Media Leaks
Following the closures of Crop Circle Games and Possibility Space, Prytania Media still has two studios remaining; Dawon Entertainment and Fang & Claw. However, it remains unclear what their statuses are in the midst of the issues, said GameSpot.
Strain is most widely known for being the co-founder of ArenaNet and his work on Guild Wars, a highly popular MMO. He also founded Undead Labs prior to its sale to Microsoft. The studio was the subject of a 2019 report regarding a culture of sexism, bullying, and burnout.
He declined to respond to requests for comments at the time and instead posted his response to the issues in his own Medium post. He said that he stood by his leadership at Undead Labs as well as his leadership as a co-founder of ArenaNet and Possibility Space.
The situation comes as companies do not usually shut down because some of their employees allegedly spoke to a reporter. Also, it is not common for publishing partners to deny funding to projects for this reason alone.
The responsibility of a studio's closure, for whatever reason, all falls upon the CEO who leads the company. Implying otherwise while also laying off staff with no guaranteed severance, is seen as the wrong thing to do, according to Rock Paper Shotgun.
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