Gusto Games ‘insolvent and emptied’

Oxford-based independent Gusto Games has terminated employment of its remaining staff, studio sources have told Develop, with the company now believed to have become insolvent following a long battle in administration.

One studio insider said the company’s final round of layoffs affected about 17 staff, though this could not be verified.

Gusto, which cut off a quarter of its staff about eighteen months ago, is thought to have gradually reduced its headcount by half in the intervening months. It entered administration last year and was granted an extension in January.

Its administrator’s client is on holiday and has not returned calls at the time of going to press. Gusto Games’ website is no longer operational.

In 2009 Gusto closed its studio in Derby, leaving it with just one development base in Oxford.

Gusto then embarked on a studio transition – from a developer of ‘old guard’ retail games to one that hoped would crack the digital and mobile games space.