The Agency Cancelled, SOE Staff Fired
Sony Online Entertainment today announced that its hotly anticipated MMO The Agency has been cancelled. In addition, it said that 205 people were losing their jobs as a result of extensive cutbacks.
The Agency, which was due to be released on the PC and PS3 in the near future, was to be a spy-themed MMO and has been in development for a number of years. In fact, it was apparently in quite an advanced stage of development, so the cancellation comes as a bit of a surprise.
According to PC Gamer, SOE is closing its Denver, Seattle and Tucson studios. Employees who survive the cull will be moved to other projects, like Planetside Next and Everquest Next.
"As part of a strategic decision to reduce costs and streamline its global workforce, SOE announced today that it will eliminate 205 positions and close its Denver, Seattle and Tucson studios,” SOE said in a statement.
"As part of this restructuring, SOE is discontinuing production of The Agency so it can focus development resources on delivering two new MMOs based on its renowned PlanetSide and EverQuest properties, while also maintaining its current portfolio of online games. All possible steps are being taken to ensure team members affected by the transition are treated with appropriate concern.
SOE oversees some of the most popular MMOs in the world, such as Everquest and Everquest 2, but has recently decided to cut back on its ambitions to expand its market influence.
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