Climax readies for restructure

Climax has two studios in the UK – a busy handheld team based in London, and its HQ in Portsmouth – which will be reorganised into a new unified management structure along with the LA-based team under head of development Simon Gardner.

The 70 positions will be across the two UK teams, while the Santa Monica outfit will be reduced to 14 people. The LA studio will still work on devising new products, however, but will be managed by the UK team.

In a surprise move last month Climax sold its renowned Brighton-based racing team to Buena Vista Games – but it’s a decision that gives the studio a free and open future going forward, according to CEO Karl Jeffrey.

"The sale of our Brighton studio has provided the capital needed to become a real player in new gen and original game development," said Jeffrey.

"New gen game development requires incredible focus and the removal of all barriers to your teams creating and communicating effectively. Integrating our management structure in this way and doing more of our development in the UK will allow us to control the production process better. I am also looking forward to recruiting new talent into the company."

Climax recently announced on its company website that the first of its new titles was PS3/360 new-IP title The Fixer.

More details on Climax’ ambitious new plans can be found in an exclusive interview with Climax CEO Karl Jeffrey in the next issue of Develop, out at the start of November.