EA Pulls The Plug On 'SimCity,' 'Spore' Developer Maxis

Maxis Emeryville, the primary studio for well-regarded PC game developer Maxis has been shut down. The developer has been associated with highly popular and long running videogame franchises such as "SimCity," "Sims" and "Spore." Electronic Arts, which owns the studio, has confirmed the news but it has reassured fans that the Maxis brand will continue to exist through other locations and through other endeavours carried out by the parent company.

EA has announced in a statement that it will be consolidating the development for existing Maxis games from its studios based in Redwood Shores, Salt Lake City, Helsinki and Melbourne. Kotaku points out that the decision comes at a rather strange and unfortunate timing – just before Game Developers Conference, which is an industry platform that's usually preferred by publishers to announce new IPs and sequels. Looks like it would be safe to assume that there won't be any major announcement from Maxis' end at this year's GDC.

EA's statement wasn't clear about the number of Maxis employees being let go, but the publisher has stated that some of the affected employees will be assimilated into remaining Maxis locations within the company and even elsewhere within the organisation. However, the company does acknowledge that some of them will be leaving after all, as reported by VG247.

"All employees impacted by the changes today will be given opportunities to explore other positions within the Maxis studios and throughout EA," said Electronic Arts in a statement to Kotaku. "For those that are leaving the company, we are working to ensure the best possible transition with separation packages and career assistance."

The shuttering of the main studio arm was initially revealed through a tweet by Maxis designer Guillaume Pierre. EA put the official seal of acknowledgement shortly thereafter through an official statement.

Gamers who have bought Maxis' recent title "Sims 4," which released in the latter half of 2014, were assured by EA that the game would continue to get official support from the publisher. In fact, despite the culling of the developer, the game is slated to receive its first expansion pack and along with a "full slate of additional updates and content" already being developed for it.

Maxis was originally founded by legendary videogame designer Will Wright in 1987. The developer was known for making the "SimCity" series of games, which was initially released on the Commodore 64. The company was bought over by Electronic Arts a decade later in 1997.

The primary reason behind the closure is widely believed to be the public backlash against the 2013 "SimCity" reboot's always-online DRM policies, which led to poor sales performance. The company's last game, "Sims 4," didn't fulfil sales expectations either.

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The Sims 4: Official Launch Trailer (credit: The Sims YouTube channel)