The video game industry is full of beloved studios that produced some excellent games. Many of these companies have been around forever, producing hit after hit for decades. Companies like Naughty Dog and Rockstar keep sticking around because their games are great and this leads them to success after success.
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Some developers aren’t as lucky. Plenty of developers have worked hard to produce some classic games, and yet somewhere along the way they shut their doors for good. Plenty of studios during the sixth and seventh generation of consoles all produced a ton of hits, and yet today are no longer around.
9Zipper Interactive
Zipper Interactive was a subsidiary of Sony Computer Entertainment and had previously worked on games likeMechWarrior 3. However, in 2006 they became part of PlayStation after a series of successes with theSOCOMgames. These tactical shooters marked some of Sony’s first online games on the PS2 and were critical and commercial successes.
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The commercial success wouldn’t last, however. After the relative failures ofMAGon the PS3 andUnit 13on the PlayStation Vita, Sony made the decision to shutter the studio entirely in 2012.
8THQ
As a publisher and developer, THQ quietly built up a library of beloved titles during the 2000s.Saints Rowwas the big franchise, developed by their internal studio Volition, but they had success elsewhere too.Darksiders, Red Faction, Destroy All Humans!andDe Blobwere all popular titles with dedicated fan bases.
However, THQ also made several financial missteps and ended up filing for bankruptcy in 2012, closing its doors and selling off most of its properties. Their franchises mostly ended up in the hands of Embracer Group, who also purchased the name and formed THQ Nordic, a new publisher that now handles most of those properties.
7Ensemble Studios
Once upon a time, Ensemble Studios were one of the major players in the real-time strategy genre. After creating theAge of Empiresfranchise and receiving great acclaim in 1997, they would go on to become part of Microsoft’s development studios.
Age of Empirescontinued to thriveand eventually, Microsoft even gave them the chance to build a game in theHalouniverse. However, whileHalo Warswas shaping up to be a great game, it would end up being their last game. Microsoft announced the closure of the studio during the development ofHalo Wars, citing restructuring reasons. Ensemble was allowed to finishHalo Warsbefore closing for good.
6Bizarre Creations
Bizarre Creations were a studio that gained a great deal of acclaim for developing racing games. After some success withFormula 1games with Sony in the 1990s, they would createMetropolis Street Racerfor Sega andProject Gotham Racingfor Microsoft. Working with Microsoft, they turned PGR into a franchise and also created theGeometry Warsseries.
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In 2007, Bizarre Creations were acquired by Activision. However, only three years later Activision made the decision to sell off the studio. After being unable to find a buyer, they simply closed the studio entirely, leavingBlurandJames Bond: Blood Stoneas their final games.
5Neversoft
TheTony Hawk’s Pro Skaterfranchise was one of the defining game franchises of the 2000s, and developerNeversoft was riding high off its success. So much so that they were also able to branch out into producing the fan-favoriteSpider-Mangame for PS1 and the Western-themed Xbox 360 launch titleGun. After developer Harmonix left theGuitar Heroproject after the second game, Neversoft was selected to replace them.
However, onceGuitar Herohype steadily died down, Neversoft’s fortunes changed. Activision would shift them to support work for theCall of Dutyfranchise in 2011, before eventually closing the studio entirely in 2014.
4Sony Japan Studio
While many of Sony’s defining franchises typically come from their Western studios, Sony Japan has a solid reputation of its own. Most notably, the studio was home to Team Ico, creators of the critically acclaimedIcoandShadow of the Colossus. They also created a bunch of unique IPs for Sony, including theApe Escapeseries, the PSP rhythm action gamesPataponandLocoRoco, and the PS2 horror titleSiren.
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During the 2010s, Sony would focus more of their development efforts on their Western studios, leading to gradual departures from Japan Studio. Eventually, the only team left at the studio was Team Asobi, developers of the PS5 pack-in gameAstro’s Playroom. Sony would close the wider Japan Studio soon after.
3Free Radical Design
Free Radical Design is a studio that started strong. Their initial staff all left Rare after working onGoldeneyeandPerfect Dark, looking to make their own shooter IP in a new studio. That shooter IP wasTimesplitters, and that game and its sequels would quickly become fan favorites. Some consider the series to be amongsome of the best sci-fi shooters ever made.
Sadly, the company fell into money troubles. It was purchased by Crytek in 2009, then closed in 2014. The staff would be transferred to a new studio, Dambuster Studios, which worked onHomefront: The Revolution. However, the studio has been revived under new ownership under the Embracer Group, which is looking to bring back theTimesplittersfranchise.
Lionhead Studios was once a major name in PC gaming. After the release of the innovative god gameBlack and White, the studio would also work onThe MoviesandFable, both of which were well received. Lionhead would be acquired by Microsoft in 2006 to build theFableseries further. It would go on to becomeone of Xbox’s more iconic franchises.
Lionhead would have a rough time as a Microsoft subsidiary. They frequently encountered financial issues and their ambitious Kinect projects often encountered production issues. Microsoft would eventually close Lionhead in 2016, cancelingFable Legendsin the process.
1Clover Studio
In the 2000s, Capcom was full of talented and iconic developers, includingResident Evilcreator Shinji Mikami andDevil May Cry’s director Hideki Kamiya. There was so much talent, in fact, that several of them got together to form their own internal studio, Clover. They would create a ton of memorable games for Capcom, including theViewtiful Joeseries,God HandandOkami.
However, whilethese games were critical darlings, they often underperformed in sales numbers. This led Capcom to try and merge the company into its main studios. Many developers refused this, resulting in the company being abandoned and closed. Most of the team would go on to become Platinum Games, where much of Clover’s legacy lives on.
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