If you're a fan of Faxion Online, the last thing you want to hear about is members of the game's development team getting the axe. Unfortunately, that's exactly what happened today -- UTV Ignition has reportedly cut staff from the division responsible for much of the game's programming and maintenance. Exact lists have varied, with Don Choi (vice-president of UTV's online division) claiming that only a small fraction of employees were let go while employees affected have claimed that the majority of the studio has now been cut.
The affected team members have claimed that the game's customer service and support are also being cut and outsourced, while Choi maintains that the game will still be running and receive updates and improvements. Which version of events is the honest one is a bit unclear at the moment, but we offer our condolences to Faxion Online development members affected by these layoffs.
Reader Comments (15)
Posted: Jul 18th 2011 6:36PM Beau Hindman said
Ugh, sorry to hear that. I hope it turns out OK for everyone, and for the game.
Beau
Beau
Posted: Jul 18th 2011 6:47PM aaradun said
game was meh, so doesn't supprise me to be honest. sorry to hear for those that lost their job.
Posted: Jul 18th 2011 6:54PM Fabius Bile said
same here, feel sorry for those losing their jobs in the current economy, but cant say Im really surprised.
This was "Chronicle of a Death Foretold"...
This was "Chronicle of a Death Foretold"...
Posted: Jul 18th 2011 7:05PM Sunlover said
This is the most important reason to make sure your games ship when they are ready, developers/publishers. I know I don't know all of the goings on and any other economic, financial, or business issues involved, but I do know that things like this don't happen as much to game development studios that release solid products.
Hate discovering that a game I was looking forward to or interested in is a disappointment. But I hate reading things like this even more.
Hate discovering that a game I was looking forward to or interested in is a disappointment. But I hate reading things like this even more.
Posted: Jul 18th 2011 7:34PM Popplewell said
This, of course, was the game Sean Dahlberg left TOR to be a part of.
Posted: Jul 19th 2011 1:41AM Ripper McGee said
@Popplewell Leaving a company in which you have no creative stake (he was a CM) for the opportunity to work on an ambitions project (small team, low budget and very, very short timeline for a MMO) and help design something from the ground up is a pretty ballsy thing to do and he has my respect for it. If Faxion fails, it fails, but props to him for trying to do something he wanted to.
Also, working on TOR isn't all it's cracked up to be. I've had two friends working on that project in two different capacities, both of whom are MUCH happier where they are now.
Reply
Also, working on TOR isn't all it's cracked up to be. I've had two friends working on that project in two different capacities, both of whom are MUCH happier where they are now.
Posted: Jul 18th 2011 7:55PM Syesta said
Not surprising.
UTV Ignition is supposedly getting out of the development business all together and is going to be solely a publishing outfit.
UTV Ignition is supposedly getting out of the development business all together and is going to be solely a publishing outfit.
Posted: Jul 18th 2011 9:45PM Ripper McGee said
Sucks :( I feel horrible for those affected. It's yet another round of layoffs in Austin...
As for the game, it's better than it's ever been and has some really promising new features coming, too. If they can fix the performance issues with ATI cards, i'll be greatly improved for a pretty large gamer population, too.
As for the game, it's better than it's ever been and has some really promising new features coming, too. If they can fix the performance issues with ATI cards, i'll be greatly improved for a pretty large gamer population, too.
Posted: Jul 18th 2011 11:30PM startruck said
this industry just can't seem to learn from itself.
Posted: Jul 18th 2011 11:37PM MewmewGirl said
I have been waiting to see the announcement of this game closing actually. When you go on the game there aren't that many people playing it and they are constantly giving away Cash Shop items to try to lure in new players (doing it far too often - in a way that let you know they were getting desperate). The game felt like it was a nice start but needed more work. PvP games also aren't my choice of game anyway. I know it's Faction based PvP but it's not like the type that have a huge land of their own, you hit the other guys pretty early on.
Posted: Jul 19th 2011 3:59AM Boojum said
It makes me feel sad for the folk working there.
I know the sting of putting your faith in a small hopeful company only for it to fold underneath you.
You have to be quite savvy these days to put together a small successful MMO outfit and keep your people employed...times is tough.
I know the sting of putting your faith in a small hopeful company only for it to fold underneath you.
You have to be quite savvy these days to put together a small successful MMO outfit and keep your people employed...times is tough.
Posted: Jul 20th 2011 10:18AM Phenomen said
The idea of the game is interesting, but game itself is so incomplete and not enjoyable at all.
Posted: Jul 20th 2011 10:38AM hami83 said
I enjoyed what I played, but I have trouble running the game on both my desktop and netbook.








