So, who saw this coming? Ken Levine has posted a message on Irrational Games' website which states that he is closing the studio which made the now infamous and critically acclaimed Bioshock series.
In the message he writes;
"Seventeen years is a long time to do any job, even the best one. And working with the incredible team at Irrational Games is indeed the best job I’ve ever had. While I’m deeply proud of what we’ve accomplished together, my passion has turned to making a different kind of game than we’ve done before. To meet the challenge ahead, I need to refocus my energy on a smaller team with a flatter structure and a more direct relationship with gamers. In many ways, it will be a return to how we started: a small team making games for the core gaming audience.
I am winding down Irrational Games as you know it. I’ll be starting a smaller, more entrepreneurial endeavor at Take-Two. That is going to mean parting ways with all but about fifteen members of the Irrational team. There’s no great way to lay people off, and our first concern is to make sure that the people who are leaving have as much support as we can give them during this transition."
He does make it clear in the message that those unfortunate enough to not be taken with him on his endeavor will still be supported financially. They will also still have access to the studio to say their farewells and put together their portfolio to help them gain employment in the industry.
He states that his new project and team will "Make narrative-driven games for the core gamer that are highly replayable. To foster the most direct relationship with our fans possible, we will focus exclusively on content delivered digitally."
Levine closes out the message thanking Irrational, 2K Games, and the legion of fans for their passion and belief in the work they have created.
Obviously it is too early to even speculate what is next for Ken Levine but one thing is for sure, he has a very talented team to work with at one of the worlds biggest publishers. All of us at Senshudo TV wish him and his new team luck with the upcoming project and would also like to extend that to those seeking new employment in the industry.