2K China closed as Borderlands Online cancelled

Take-Two Interactive has closed its Shanghai studio, following the decision to cancel an MMO version of popular franchise Borderlands.

2K China was home to 150 members of staff, according to GamesIndustry. Take-Two has said it is “working with affected staff to identify other opportunities within the company where possible”.

The team was established last year when the publisher secured a partnership with local firm Shanda Games to create Borderlands Online.

"We determined that the additional time required to finish current projects at the studio, particularly Borderlands Online, would not yield a favourable return on investment,” Take-Two said in a statement.

“The costs associated with the closure will not materially impact the company’s financial results. This decision does not affect our team behind NBA 2K Online, which has been and continues to be highly successful for our company. In addition, we look forward to the commercial launch of Civilization Online in Korea during this fiscal year.”

Take-Two further clarified that not only would the Shanghai-based team behind NBA remain unaffected, so would its office in Singapore and testing facility in Chengdu.