Rumour: EA shuts down Pandemic

California–based developer Pandemic Studios is the latest victim of EA’s mass staff reduction operation, reports suggest, and may have closed down completely.

An EA spokesperson was not available for comment as a news report from Kotaku went live and suggested that EA has shuttered the studio completely, taking as many as 200 jobs with it.

Pandemic Studios, which has in the past developed games such as Star Wars: Battlefront will “today be closed down by owners Electronic Arts”, read the report, citing anonymous sources.

Only a small fraction of Pandemic’s 200 staff will be integrated into other EA studios and businesses, the report claims, with the vast remainder left without a job.

The truth behind the matter is thought will be revealed shortly, with Pandemic staff set to make an announcement at 11am Pacific Time.

EA announced last week that it needed to lay off 900 development jobs, and close "several facilities", in order to save itself $100 million annually.

Pandemic was founded in 1998 and has gained a reputation for delivering the Star Wars: Battlefront series along with titles such as Full Spectrum Warrior, Mercenaries and Destroy All Humans.

The developer’s owning company – VG Holding Corp – was officially bought by EA in early 2008. In Feburary this year, after EA announced its initial wave of layoffs, the Pandemic offices in Brisbane, Australia were closed down.