Back in April, Take-Two announced that it would be laying off around 5% of its workforce as part of a cost-cutting initiative. There’s been a lot of confusion around the announcement, with some reports saying that studios like Roll7 and Intercept are being shuttered, and Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick denying it. Either way, today game director Quinn Duffy has said via Linkedin that the team at Intercep??t are out of a job as of June 28.

It’s pretty frustrating. When previously asked directly about the status of Roll7 (developer of the acclaimed OlliOlli World and Rollerdrome) and Intercept Games (Kerbal Space Program 2) during an interview with IGN, Zelnick stated, “We didn't shutter those studios, to be clear.�/p>

Despite the choice of words, this seems hardly clear. Internal reports claimed to contradict this statement. But when IGN pressed for, erm, clarity, Zelnick said, “We did not give a label-by-label breakdown of what [the restructuring] looks like.�/p>

I suppose it’s technically? accurate that no public statement had been made, but I’d find it pretty embarrassing to split hairs over this.

In a Linkedin post today, Intercept’s game director Quinn Duffy said, “The team at Intercept Games will be laid off as of June 28th so a great group will be out and about looking for their new roles. As will I.�/p>

To echo what my colleague Michael Beckwith wrote, I don’t see what the point of the denial is. Even a “no comment�would be more appropriate. Instead, this is like a parent telling a child they didn’t buy them a Game Boy for their birthday to keep it a surprise, but in this instance, it’s a studio being laid off. It just feels like a really i?nsulting misdirection. Corporate executives really don’t seem to have much respect for t?heir employees.

Few announcements have been made regarding the development of Kerbal Space Program 2, which is currently in Early Access. Take-Two confirmed to Game Developer that it will continue to make updates to Kerbal Space Program 2, but t?o what extent? those updates will go is unclear.

The closure of Roll7 has likewise not been officially confirmed, but considering the internal note ?originated from that company, it feels all but certain. It's a frustrating situation for a number of developers who are now being forced out into a competitive, stru??ggling job market, with their previous work and livelihoods still taught on strings for show.

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After Take-Two Interactive announced it would be laying off 5% of its workforce in April, it was reported just a couple of weeks later that the company w??????????????????????????ould als?o be shuttering two of its subsidiaries: Roll7 and Intercept Games. However, Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick has denied closing down any such studios while at the same time refusing to confirm that they're still open.

During an interview with IGN, Zelnick was asked about why it was decided that Roll7 (the London-based studio behind Rollerdrome and OlliOlli World) and Intercept Games (the Seattle-based studio that made Kerbal Space Program 2) would close. Zelnick simply answered with, "We didn't shutter those studios," adding, "We've announced that we're saving $165 million in existing and ?future costs, but we haven't shuttered anything."

IGN did push for a definitive answer on whether this means both studios remain operational, but a PR representative stepped in to refer back to the company's cost reduction plan. Basically, all Take-Two is willing to say is that 5% of staff worldwide wer??e let go, but it "did not give a label-by-label breakdown of what that looks like." When asked again about the status of Roll7 and Intercept Games, the PR representative only said, "We have not provided any additio??nal color beyond what I just said."

So, does this mean Take-Two is denying the? Bloomberg report? Again, it didn't offer a concrete answer but, in the wake of IGN's interview, Bloomberg's Jason Schreier posted on Twitter part of the note Roll7 employees had received and shared with him. The note clearly states, "We are therefore proposing to shut down [Roll7]." As for Inte?rcept Games, Bloomberg had spotted a notice filed with the Washington State Employment Security Department, which showed Take-Two intended to shut down a Seattle-based office and cut 70 employees. That description perfectly matches Intercept Games.

This whole situation is frankly bizarre since there is evidence of Roll7 and Intercept Games' closure, yet Take-Two is saying this isn't the case. Surely if Take-Two intended to keep both studios open, it would just say so, but it isn't for some reason. Although this wouldn't be the first time Take-Two's done this. 2K Marin, the studio behind BioShock 2, was shut down in 2013 after mass layoffs (per Rock Paper Shotgun), but 2K never acknowledged the closure. Zelnick even insisted that 2K Marin would be responsible for helming the BioShock series months after reports of the studio's closure (per GamesIndustry.biz). For the record, a new BioShock is in development, but at a new internal studio called Cloud Chamber, which had taken over 2K Marin's old San Francisco office according to a 2019 report by Eurogamer.

I cannot fathom what advantage there is to pretending that a studio is still open. It's bad enough that studio shutdowns are becoming distressingly common in the games industry, with Microsoft just recent?ly closing four ??of its own, including Tango Gameworks. If the 2K Marin exampl??e is anything to go by, Take-??Two may not ever formally announce the closures of Roll7 and Intercept Games, even if we never see a new game from either of them.

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Shooting for the Mun

The next step of the Kerbal space adventure is lifting off next year. Kerbal Space Program is launching into early access on February ?24, 2023 for PC.

Early access will be available ??on PC through Steam, the Epic Game Store, and other digital storefronts. Development will continue, as ?Intercept Games keeps working on features and tuning in the months after launch.

To showcase all this, Intercept released a lengthy developer update today, announcing the news and detailing w??hat's in store for the early access launch.

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=XAL3XaP-LyE

Right out of the gate, players will be able to customize parts for your space-bound vehicles. There are over 350 new and improved parts in Kerbal Space Program 2, which is a lot of different options for making a rocket that will blast into orbit in a very undignified manner, if you play Kerbal like I do.

While catastrophes can be fun, getting into space is the goal. Fo players like me, there are going to be improved onboarding tools, according to Intercept. New animated tutorials and revamped interfaces are inte?nded to help new players.

One small step for Kerbal

??Other quality-of-life features are working their way in, too. Updated UI is a big one, as are indicators for doing interplanetary maneuvers. Alongside that, there's a lot more detail in the environments you'll be blasting off to explore.

While the original Kerbal Space Program lit the hearts of aspiring rocket engineers aflame, the follow-up has been bouncing around in the lab. This sequel has been in development for quite some time.

Although it's been a while, I am keen to see what Private Division and Intercept do with Kerbal Space Program 2. Their ambitions for the game have seemed pretty lofty, stretching out into some wild areas of space exploration. But it's that venturous attitude that has me interested to see what the talented Kerbal engineers can do with the new tools.

So whether you're a newcomer looking to stars or a seasoned Kerbal engineer, it looks like there will be new tools to tinker with in the new year. Kerbal Space Program laun?ches its PC early access on February 24, 2023.

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Take to space once more with the lil' Kerbals

It's been a while, but it sounds like we'll finally start putting Kerbals on the moon (or somewhere in the vicinity) next year. Today, the Kerbal Space Program 2 team announced the spacefaring se??quel is aim??ing for early 2023 on PC.

Creative Director Nate Simpson made the announcement in a new video, discussing what's been going on with development. Right now, the early 2023 window is just for PC; con??sole versions are expected to follow sometime after.

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=PjE_YCl5xcg

Simpson emphasizes the goals his team has for Kerbal Space Program 2, including managing performance across a wide variety of machines and a rich universe to explore. It will take a little extr?a time to make, but Simpson and the team seem to want to hit their internal goal?s of making something "original and breathtaking."

Fly me to the moon

The first Kerbal Space Program was a bit of a surprise.? It's a pretty intense, rules-driven space flight simulator that feels like a springboard into learning basic? rocket science. And it's also quirky and comedic, thanks to the unerring determination of its minion-like astronauts, the Kerbals.

A failed launch is made a little better by watching the hilarious after-effects. And a successful mission? Well, that can mean putting a Kerbal on the moon. It's an exciting game, even for those who don't normally go for hardcore sim games.

The sequel has had a fair share of setbacks, though. Announced for a 2020 launch at first, then later slipping into 2021, it seems like 2023 is its new target for now.

While the date keeps on moving, it sounds like Kerbal Space Program 2 is really trying to do some new things with colony building and interstellar travel. Perhaps the extra time and help from the original Kerbal developers will help the whole trip come together?.

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