Factor 5 USA Shuts Down

The American studio of developers Factor 5 has closed, German studio remains

Creators of such games as Star Wars: Rouge Squadron and more recently the PS3 title Lair, Factor 5’s Californian based studio has closed today. The state-side division is shutting down due to the bankruptcy of Brash Entertainment which was to publish their current project.

The staggered financial flow-on from the loss of a publisher left no choice for Factor 5, one of many international developers feeling the pinch under the current worldwide economic down-turn.

The news was revealed on Factor 5’s official site which has now dropped the American style ‘.com’ and fallen back on the german ‘.de’. The regrettable turn of events was announced on the site-

"We are sorry to announce the closure of the San Rafael-based Factor 5, Inc. studio, but the obstacles created by the sudden bankruptcy of Brash Entertainment for the continuation of operations have turned out too great to overcome in the current economic climate.

"Factor 5 GmbH, which has been creating games since 1988 with it’s headquarter in Cologne, Germany, is entirely unrelated to Factor 5, Inc. and the circumstances surrounding Factor 5 Inc.’s recent challenges. Although we are saddened by Factor 5 Inc.’s situation, our corporation will remain unaffected by these developments and has partnered with both old and new friends in the industry who will reveal our upcoming projects over the next months…

We would like to thank everybody on the publishing and development side who have supported us throughout the last 20 years and continue to do so. The current transition of the games industry is challenging, but as with transitions prior there is more opportunity than ever for independent development out there."

Partnered with friends in the industry old and new? Nintendo perhaps?