Crytek acquires Free Radical [update]
by Jem Alexander 
on Feb 3rd 2009 7:35PM
Free Radical's future just got a little less Haze-y (we know,
sorry). We already knew that an announcement regarding the developers of the
TimeSplitters series and
Haze would be coming tomorrow, but we may have just skipped ahead to the ending. A single anonymous source had told us that Germany's Crytek – the developer behind the original
Far Cry and
Crysis – have acquired the UK-based Free Radical. While writing this very post,
1UP reported that Haze scriptwriter Rob Yescombe confirmed the very same thing. We're trying to get a comment from either party (or they can
get a hold of us here!).
It's not clear what the ramifications of this are: While
Battlefront 3 is rumored to be in development at either
Rebellion (in the UK) or
Pandemic (in LA), the latest in Free Radical's longest
-running series,
TimeSplitters 4, could still be on the table. Of course, Crytek would have to make a few changes ... there's got to be
some way they can fit the word "cry" into the title somewhere.
[UPDATE] GamesIndustry.biz
has confirmed via the administrators that the sale has gone ahead. As a result, 40 jobs have been saved. A formal announcement is expected later today, when we'll hopefully find out more details.
