Despite the fact I live 20 metres away from a cinema, I still haven’t had the chance to see The Avengers yet. But all this hype has got me wondering precisely why THQ spent $16 million acquiring the license, then countless more millions developing the game, only to cancel it. Particularly when the pre-alpha footage looked so solid.
The games industry does not treat its creatives well, on that we can agree. A troubling pattern seems to be emerging — allow developers the time they need to create a product, and then casually cast them aside when the job is complete. Today, in response, we ask publishers a simple question: what do you make?
While THQ has issued a statement claiming that it’s 2014 schedule is safe, allaying fears that the company was struggling for survival. There is little doubt that THQ is in a difficult spot. 2011 was undoubtedly a difficult year, with its share price dropping to 66 cents.
Graysonline is an online auction clearing house that generally gets their goods from company bankruptcies, deceased estates or excess stock from major retailers. I bought my fridge from there. So when an anonymous reader informed us that you could buy THQ Studio Australia’s old Space Marine statue from there after its closure earlier this year, it made me feel a little sad.
After the closure of THQ’s Australian studios, we follow the progress of ex-THQ Studio Australia Game Programmer Anthony Reddan, a young developer who recently left Australia to work overseas in Canada. Is his journey representative of a brain drain in the Australian games industry, or is the local indie development scene on the verge of a glorious rebirth?
