XBOX Reportedly Closing Studio Behind Hellblade Games

Citing a single source, The Verge reports that XBOX is closing Ninja Theory, the studio behind the Hellblade series of games. XBOX is also reportedly considering closing Psychonauts developer Double Fine and We Happy Few maker Compulsion Games, though none of these have been confirmed.

The Ninja Theory closure comes at an awkward time as XBOX showed off the next Hellblade title, Senua, at the recent Xbox Games Showcase where it also demonstrated Halo: Campaign Evolved, Gears of War: E-Day, and Fable gameplay. According to the report, staffers were told earlier today about the closure and there are hopes it can find a buyer.

If true, this will likely be the first of many seismic events to rock XBOX in the coming weeks as part of an organization-wide reset. Laurent earlier wrote about how pivotal that Xbox Game Showcase would be for XBOX, but we’ve heard nothing but bad news in the week since. XBOX CEO Asha Sharma is considering new business models and perhaps even a spin-off to turn around the business, but there are “hard truths” coming that will absolutely include studio closures and layoffs. And earlier today, we learned that XBOX Game Studios CEO Craig Duncan and Louise O’Connor, both Rare veterans, are leaving the company.

Hopefully, Ninja Theory can find a buyer: The previous Hellblade titles were well-received and sold well, and Senua looks to continue those trends.