EA closes Pandemic Studios

With the global economy going through hard times, most markets have been affected and unfortunately video games are not the exception. Sales are falling behind this year compared to 2008 and the holiday season is sure to bring a fierce price battle amongst the main retailers.

Not even the big companies are being spared from the effects of the economy. Video game giant Electronic Arts has decided to close Pandemic Studios, one of its recently acquired studios. This decision was part of a plan to cut 1,500 jobs in an effort to restructure the company.

EA plans to start publishing less console games and focus more on online titles which can prove more profitable for them. Pandemic Studios was acquired by EA, along with Bioware Corp. in 2007.

It’s really sad to see this happening, but I guess it’s the price for staying afloat in hard economic times. The video games industry has been growing strongly for the past few years and when the economy bounces back it’s sure to continue its growth. Studios are going to start growing again soon and when that happens I’m sure that these people will find positions in the industry.

Pandemic was most recently working on The Saboteur which was scheduled to be released December 2009 for the Xbox 360, PS3 and PC.

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