Epic Games has taken its close relationship with People Can Fly to the next level, completely purchasing the Warsaw-based developer behind Bulletstorm and the upcoming Gears of War: Judgment.
People Can Fly has collaborated with Epic a number of times in the last decade, working on titles like the PC version of Gears of War, its first-person shooter Bulletstorm, and other projects. Epic acquired a majority stake in the developer five years ago.
But as People Can Fly toils on the next entry of the company's flagship franchise Gears of War: Judgment, Epic has opted to buy the studio outright. The developer joins a number of other wholly owned Epic subsidiaries like Chair Entertainment, Epic Games Japan, Epic Games Korea, and recently established Impossible Studios.
The acquisition announcement, though, comes with the news that three key developers have left People Can Fly: founder and creative director Adrian Chmielarz, lead artist Andrzej Poznansi, and principal artist Michal Kosieradzki.
Epic Games vice president Mark Rein claimed their departures will not have a significant negative impact on Gears of War: Judgment's development, according to The Verge. He also said the same regarding director of production Rod Fergusson's defection from Epic to Irrational Games to work on Bioshock Infinite.
Indeed, they had a majority stake. They have now bought the rest from Chmielarz et al.
The difference is that, up until now, Chmielarz run the team on-site while Epic consistently avoided micromanagement (though they did have a say in the recruitment policy, for example). Now they get to put whomever they want directly in charge of everything.
The difference is that, up until now, Chmielarz run the team on-site while Epic consistently avoided micromanagement (though they did have a say in the recruitment policy, for example). Now they get to put whomever they want directly in charge of everything.