Sony closes and restructures two UK studios

Sony is to make sweeping changes across two of its development sites in the UK, Develop understands.

The PlayStation firm has proposed the closure of Leamington Spa outfit Bigbig, which recently finished work on Little Deviants for Vita.

Meanwhile, Sony’s Cambridge division is to be restructured. The studio is to partner with Netherlands outfit Guerilla Games, likely in a downsized capacity, to build Killzone games for PlayStation Vita.

Update: Sony has confirmed both actions to Develop. The extent of the job losses remains unclear, with finer details still to be ironed out.

It is believed the move will not affect other UK studios Media Molecule, Evolution, Sony Liverpool and London.

Sony said BigBig “has been an important part of SCE Worldwide Studios” since it joined the group in 2007.

“However, it was felt that by focusing on other Studios that are currently working on exciting new projects, we would be in a stronger position to offer the best possible content for our consumers,” the company told Develop.

“We have reviewed and assessed all current projects and plans for the short and medium term and have decided to make some changes to European studios. As a result of this, there will be a realignment of resource within the studio to ensure that the studio is in the best position to achieve this.”

The closure of BigBig leaves Sony with 15 first-party studios – still the largest group of development outfits in the games industry.