Earlier today, Capcom announced that it was killing a number of untitled projects at its Vancouver studio, which had been responsible for every Dead Rising title since the second. Now, the publisher has confirmed it will shut down Capcom Vancouver entirely, affecting nearly 160 employees.
In a statement circulated to various outlets, Capcom says it “has been focused on increasing the efficiency and growth of its game development operations. To support this objective, new R&D facilities and annual hiring have been underway at the Osaka headquarters. In consideration of this process, as a result of reviewing titles in development at Capcom Vancouver, Capcom has decided to cancel the development projects at this studio and will concentrate development of major titles in Japan.”
The statement concludes “We appreciate the hard work and contributions of all the studio team members in creating unforgettable gameplay experiences for the Dead Rising series and Puzzle Fighter.”
A Capcom rep additionally tells Kotaku that 158 employees will lose their jobs in the shutdown. A “skeleton crew” will remain in place until January 2019 to handle logistics around the closure. An additional, anonymous source says that many employees had left for EA Vancouver in recent months. That studio is currently working on an untitled Star Wars game, built in part on Visceral’s cancelled game.
Layoffs hit Capcom Vancouver earlier this year, shortly ahead of the cancellation of the studio’s mobile Puzzle Fighter title. When that project shut down, the studio said it was “dedicating its focus to our flagship Dead Rising franchise.” It’s likely a new Dead Rising title was among the projects shut down along with the studio, though whether that game is now dead or moving to Capcom proper in Japan remains to be seen.
Regardless of the ultimate fate of Dead Rising, we wish the best for those affected by the studio’s closure.