SEGA Studios Australia downsizes, forges new digital strategy

News has come down that SEGA Studios Australia, the team behind London 2012, is undergoing staff redundancies.

Based in Brisbane, the team, formerly known as The Creative Assembly, has been responsible for a significant portion of the highly successful RTS Total War series from SEGA.

Now, as they transition from London 2012 into whatever their next project is, 37 staff have been made redundant, although SEGA Studios Australia itself will not be closing, and indeed has taken on an unspecified, large new project.

Gareth Gower, Director of Studio Marketing at SEGA Studios Oz, said: "As SEGA Studios Australia nears the completion of London 2012 – The Official Video Game of the Olympic Games, it is essential to look to the future and take steps to ensure long-term growth and success."

"The rise of digital gaming provides an opportunity to align the studio with a rapidly growing market at a time when the games industry is undergoing a significant transition. To this end, we can confirm that SSA has signed a multi-product deal focussing across the digital marketplace."

"We have commenced development on these titles and will announce more details in the near future."

Restructures of this type are common in between projects, and in spite of the heartache for those 37 who aren’t staying on, it is still encouraging to an Australian studio continuing on given recent closures.

Gower continued: "The decision to downsize was not taken lightly, but this strategic re-structure will ensure we have a more effective and agile team that will enable us to quickly adapt to consumer needs and deliver strong content across multiple digital platforms."

"We thank those team members affected for their contributions and wish them well in their future endeavours. We are very confident that their efforts on London 2012 will help us deliver the highest quality official Olympic video game to date."

London 2012: The Official Game of the Olympic Games will be available soon.

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