THQ Lays Off 200 Employees, Closes Down MX vs. ATV Series

Video game publisher THQ has announced that it has closed down two development studios and that it has laid off no less than 200 employees because it aims to focus on future development efforts on a number of titles that will surely make a profit.

THQ Studio Australia and Blue Tongue are the closed down studios and the company has also eliminated a development team in Phoenix.

All the locations affected by the layoffs were apparently working mainly on licensed properties, which THQ no longer believes to be adequate to the company's future plans.

Brian Farrell, who is both the president and the Chief Executive Officer of THQ, has stated, “With this realignment, we are narrowing our focus to high-quality owned IP with broad appeal that can be leveraged across multiple platforms, and to work with the best talent in the industry. By right-sizing our internal development capacities for our console portfolio, our five internal studios are focused on delivering high-quality games with talented teams driving the execution of those titles to market.”

The company leader made it clear that the main reason for the closure was that THQ is no longer interested in creating titles aimed at kids and movie tie-ins, aiming to make sure that all its future games are clear revenue generators.

THQ has also said that the MX vs. ATV franchise will no longer be developed for the time being.

The series was initially seen as a testing bed for the company, launching at a lower price point than normal and focusing on digital distribution.

The main development studios for THQ now are: Montreal, working on an unannounced title, Volition for Saints Row: The Third and inSANE, Relic Entertainment with Company of Heroes, Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine and Dawn of War III, Vigil Games for Darksiders II and THQ San Diego, linked to WWE All Stars.