Koch closes Deep Silver Vienna studio

German studio Deep Silver Vienna has closed, its parent Koch Media has confirmed.

The studio was originally formed following the sudden shutdown of Rockstar Vienna, but four years after its formation the team been disbanded – with Wii horror game Cursed Mountain its only notable release.

In a statement, Koch said "this decision is not easy for us" and cited "the current overall economic situation" as the reason behind the closure.

The publisher will now consolidate its development resources into its Munich offices.

Deep Silver Vienna was founded as Games That Matter in 2006 by former Rockstar Vienna chiefs Hannes Seifert and Niki Laber. Seifert and Laber touted a Hollywood-style model for games production which would see the team create IP and find outsourcing partners to do the development.

It was acquired by by German-HQ’d publishing and distribution giant Koch in 2007, rebranded to fit with the firm’s Deep Silver publishing label and charged with handling all the major console games released under the brand.

The studio’s first game, Cursed Mountain – made with German team Sproing Interactive – was released last year.

The closure of the studio is not thought to pose major problems to its other project, GTA-style motorbike game Road To Hell, which is produced with UK studio Eutechnyx and will be managed from Koch’s Munich offices.

German reports about the closure say the shutdown came as a surprise to its 20 staff – it seems that the employees will be paid until the end of March, and some may be offered new roles elsewhere in the Koch business.

Co-founder Seifert, meanwhile, is thought to have taken up a new role with Square Enix as creative director.