Unfortunately, the summertime is not just a time for studios to polish their holiday wares, but also a time for restructuring. According to various sources with GamesIndustry International, EA Phenomic, the developer of Spellforce and Command & Conquer: Tiberium Alliances, has been closed.
Electronic Arts has released a statement regarding the layoffs for the 60-man studio based in Ingelheim am Rhein, Germany:
As part of EA's realignment in recent weeks, we have announced internally a small adjustment to some development staff to better focus our teams against priority growth areas. The decision to let people go is not something we take lightly and we are working to ensure that impacted employees are treated fairly and with respect for their contributions to EA, and with assistance to find other job opportunities.
These are hard but essential changes as we focus on delivering great games and showing players around the world why to spend their time with us.
What this means for EA's future strategy-based and free-to-play titles is uncertain. Let's hope the 60 employees affected by this closing find their way back into the industry soon.
