Despite its strong track record with the Darksiders franchise, no one placed a bid on developer Vigil Games during THQ's fire sale last week. Instead, all of its employees were laid off, and the future of the Darksiders franchise looked bleak.
However, on Monday Crysis 3 developer Crytek, which purchased the Homefront IP from THQ, announced that it's forming a new studio here in the States. The ninth Crytek studio worldwide, this location will be called Crytek USA Corp and will be led by former Vigil Games head David Adams. What's more, Adams is bringing his 35-member core Vigil team under his new Crytek wing.
"I'm thrilled to be a part of the newest Crytek studio, which will boast some of the brightest development talent in the industry. The studio’s launch represents Crytek’s commitment to delivering diverse and high quality content to players everywhere," said David Adams, the new CEO of Austin, Texas-based Crytek USA.
"Crytek has always enjoyed a special relationship with gamers and business partners in North America, so establishing a permanent presence in the US was a natural step," added Crytek CEO, Cevat Yerli. "We are extremely excited about the work that we will be undertaking from our strategic new location in Austin, with David Adams and his team of 35 experienced developers. We believe our CryENGINE technology will enable the team we assemble to create unparalleled new gaming experiences."
Jason Rubin, former CEO of THQ, thanked Crytek via Twitter for "saving as much as they could of a fantastic team." He also added that the "Darksiders and Red Faction IP have not been auctioned yet," meaning that Crytek's new studio will not move forward with another Darksiders game unless Crytek purchases the rights.
Crytek representative Jens Schafer confirmed with Escapist Magazine that "Crytek USA won't work on a new Darksiders game. At this point in time it is too early to share any future plans."