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Report: Whore of the Orient faces uncertain future, studio layoffs

Sinan Kubba — Thu, 18 Apr 2013 06:30:00 EST

Whore of the Orient, the next game from the makers of L.A. Noire, looks to be in jeopardy following multiple reports of its team being laid off by Kennedy Mitchell Miller. MCV Pacific, Kotaku, and Player Attack sources say KMM has shuttered the Whore of the Orient division; KMM absorbed the remnants of L.A. Noire developer Team Bondi in 2011.

KMM partner Doug Mitchell didn't comment on the reports when speaking to MCV, but noted the company is still "actively pursuing the right investor to partner with" on Whore of the Orient.

Online sleuth supereroregatory dug up a blog post, now deleted, by a purported partner of a KMM staff member which indicated Warner Bros pulled out from the game in December 2012, and that any new deal with a new publisher, expected to happen this month, "would come too late."

As Kotaku notes, KMM Interactive, the company's games division, advertised for a Lead Engine Programmer as recently as April 5, raising doubts over the Whore of the Orient team being laid off so soon after. In any case, without a partner to invest in it, the game's future is in doubt. If it does come out, rumors suggest the earliest we'll see it is 2015.

Report: Whore of the Orient faces uncertain future, studio layoffs originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 18 Apr 2013 06:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Rumor: Whore of the Orient action adventure aiming for 2015

Jessica Conditt — Wed, 14 Nov 2012 17:30:00 EST

KMM Interactive, the studio that picked up Brendan McNamara and the remnants of L.A. Noire's Team Bondi, posted openings that suggest the group's next game, Whore of the Orient, is scheduled to be complete in 2015.

Spotted by Superannuation, job openings describe the game as a "narrative action adventure" that is "similar in style to LA Noire," and uses the same MotionScan tech that gave Cole his grisly demeanor.

The job descriptions set a target for full production from early 2013 to mid 2015. Whore of the Orient is a next-gen console and PC game published by Warner Bros. Interactive, and McNamara first pitched it as "one of the great untold stories of the twentieth century."

According to a website that went live for a spell in August, the game is set in 1936 Shanghai, China, and stars the International Police Force, a western group "hopelessly trying to keep the lid on and keep the peace." The website taglined the game as, "Whore of the Orient. Paris of the East."

L.A. Noire spent seven years in development, so just two for a game "similar in style" and using the same technology, from much of the same team, seems ambitious. But hey, that's what energy drinks are for.

Rumor: Whore of the Orient action adventure aiming for 2015 originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 14 Nov 2012 17:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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LA Noire team's 'Whore of the Orient' headed next-gen, published by WB

Ben Gilbert — Thu, 30 Aug 2012 09:29:00 EST

A new website for LA Noire dev Team Bondi's next game, Whore of the Orient, popped up this morning (as discovered by OPM), along with new information about the barely mentioned "great untold story." The game is headed to "next generation games consoles and PC" with Warner Bros. Interactive as publisher.

The game's set in 1936 Shanghai, China - "Whore of the Orient. Paris of the East," as the website calls it. A "group of Western cops hopelessly trying to keep the lid on and keep the peace" seems to be the focal point of the game (the group's known as the "International Police Force"), though it's unclear exactly what kind of game it is. It sounds to be just as hard-boiled as Team Bondi's last effort, LA Noire, and the gritty look of the image above incurs the same comparison.

Team Bondi leader Brendan McNamara is once again at the head of the project, leading the remnants of LA Noire's dev team picked up by Kennedy Miller Mitchell.

LA Noire team's 'Whore of the Orient' headed next-gen, published by WB originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 30 Aug 2012 09:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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'Whore of the Orient' is next game by LA Noire studio head

Alexander Sliwinski — Mon, 28 Nov 2011 14:26:00 EST

Team Bondi founder Brendan McNamara's next game will be titled Whore of the Orient, according to Australia's Financial Review. Little to nothing is known beyond the title -- which has already sent FOX News segment producers into a Bengay-rubbing tingly fervor -- with McNamara previously stating it is "one of the great untold stories of the twentieth century."

The game will be produced by KMM Interactive, the studio that picked up the broken pieces of McNamara's Team Bondi after it imploded this summer despite the success of LA Noire.

'Whore of the Orient' is next game by LA Noire studio head originally appeared on Joystiq on Mon, 28 Nov 2011 14:26:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Report: LA Noire dev Team Bondi enters administration

Ludwig Kietzmann — Thu, 01 Sep 2011 04:28:00 EST

You don't normally expect a company to release a well-reviewed hit in May and then enter administration three months later, but L.A. Noire maker Team Bondi is following a strange, tumultuous timeline. SmartCompany reports that the Sydney-based studio has been placed into administration, with accounting firm de Vries Tayeh handling the ongoing process.

A company in turmoil can be placed into administration to help facilitate payments to creditors, possibly through sale of assets or parts of the company. It's not known how exactly administration will proceed with Team Bondi, but earlier reports suggested that company assets were acquired by Kennedy Miller Mitchell (KMM), an Australian production company thought to be working on a Mad Max game. Staff at Team Bondi were reportedly offered jobs at KMM if they did not take severance pay.

If you're looking for further developments regarding the L.A. Noire franchise, it will be have to be at Rockstar -- the publisher owns the rights to what is likely to be the last game from Team Bondi as we knew it.

Report: LA Noire dev Team Bondi enters administration originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 01 Sep 2011 04:28:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Report: Team Bondi sells assets to Mad Max studio, KMM; staff offered new jobs or severance

Christopher Grant — Tue, 09 Aug 2011 11:30:00 EST

Following last weekend's rumor that Sydney-based L.A. Noire developer Team Bondi was to be acquired by Kennedy Miller Mitchell, the Australian production company thought to be working on a Mad Max game, comes a report from UK trade site Develop seemingly corroborating the rumor. "Game IP and other remaining assets owned by Sydney studio Team Bondi have been sold off," Develop reports, citing a single anonymous source "who engages with both companies locally." The staff at Team Bondi were reportedly "given choice of new job at Kennedy Miller Mitchell or severance pay." Develop doesn't know if Team Bondi will continue to exist and the developer has declined to comment.

Develop lists several additional, unconfirmed rumors or bits of speculation, including whether or not the studio has "gone bankrupt" or whether Brendan McNamara would join KMM as well, reuniting the Team Bondi leader with the "many staff" that left during L.A. Noire's troubled development. While the sale ostensibly included "game IP," one thing KMM won't be getting is the L.A. Noire IP, which is owned by publisher Rockstar. Depth Analysis, the company whose technology powered L.A. Noire's eye-catching facial animation, "is not thought to be affected" by the sale, Develop reports.

Report: Team Bondi sells assets to Mad Max studio, KMM; staff offered new jobs or severance originally appeared on Joystiq on Tue, 09 Aug 2011 11:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Rumor: Team Bondi to be acquired by Mad Max studio, KMM

Jessica Conditt — Sat, 06 Aug 2011 13:00:00 EST

Mad Max's George Miller is playing host to the artists behind L.A. Noire, Team Bondi, as the developer faces a tortured reputation, burned bridges with Rockstar and is in need of fresh studio support, according to sources at Kotaku. Team Bondi bossman Brendan McNamara has been spotted touring Miller's KMM Studio in Sydney, including a stop at Dr. D, the animation shop currently finishing Happy Feet 2, one person said.

A few former Team Bondi employees -- the same ones who reported terrible work conditions under McNamara -- work at Dr. D and found it unsettling that McNamara was touring the offices, the source said. Apparently Miller is a fan of Team Bondi's work and is sympathetic to McNamara's reputation as a strict taskmaster, according to one employee at Dr. D: "The word is going 'round that Team Bondi is being folded into KMM studios; Team Bondi is pretty much doomed after the scandal and can't find any new supporters, so by doing this they can hide their name."

Rumor: Team Bondi to be acquired by Mad Max studio, KMM originally appeared on Joystiq on Sat, 06 Aug 2011 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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