Vicarious Visions California closed

The California office of Vicarious Visions has been closed down so the studio can focus on its New York operation, it was revealed last night.

In a report on Gamasutra, reps from publisher Activision – which owns the studio – confirmed the office in Mountain View, California was closed on June 6th.

The office employed some 20 to 30 people – most have been made redundant, although some may relocate within the company. Vicarious Vision’s New York HQ is not effected by the cost-cutting measures, it seems.

Vicarious Visions was founded in 1991 by New York-based brothers Guha and Karthik Bala. Its Terminus game won it acclaim at the Independent Games Festival Awards in 1999, but it wasn’t until 2005 when Activision got involved, acquiring the studio.

Most recently the studio had produced the Wii, PS2, DS and GBA versions of Spider-Man 3.