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GRIN facing bankruptcy?

Published on 11th August 2009 by Joe Martin

GRIN's last few games haven't wowed gamers - Bionic Commando, Wanted: Weapons of Fate and Terminator: Salvation.

Stockholm-based developer GRIN is facing continued financial difficulty it seems and is expected to announce a series of studio closures and layoffs in the coming days, according to reports.

The developer already made some layoffs earlier this year and closed two studios in Barcelona and Gothenberg.

Now it seems that further layoffs are expected and the developer may be facing bankruptcy, with staff of the main Stockholm office being told not to come in to work, according to some sources within the company who have spoken out to GI.biz.

The fact that GRIN is facing continued financial difficulty is hardly surprising though, with the last three games from the developer all being pretty disappointing and getting a mostly negative reaction from critics and a mixed response at retail. GRIN's last three games have been Bionic Commando, Terminator: Salvation and Wanted: Weapons of Fate.

If the rumours of bankruptcy are true then it'll be a sad end for the developer, which was originally founded in 1997 and was best known for creating games in the Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter series.

Fears of bankruptcy are just rumours for now though, so until we know more you can pass your thoughts on in the forums.

5 Comments

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wuyanxu 11th August 2009, 11:14

well, their latest gamers are not really innovative or blockbuster sequel

sear 11th August 2009, 16:11

Unfortunate, because there are clearly talented people there if they were the ones to come up with Bionic Commando: Rearmed. Honestly, I can't blame it on their two movie-based games, considering they were actually better than average (and we all know that those are made on a very strict budget). The big problem is probably Bionic Commando. From the looks of it, they poured tons of money into it, but the poor reviews and poor sales means that they basically sealed their own doom. So many studios live game-to-game, and while it's not always healthy, sometimes it's the only way you can be competitive in the industry.

What's more, most problems in high-budget games don't stem from a lack of individual talent, but from high-up decisions like rushing the game's release, forcing the inclusion of extra game modes (like multiplayer, both competitive and co-op), publishers not paying out until milestones in development are reached, etc. It's a cruel and shaky business sometimes. GRIN has some talented people, and I hope they aren't stuck jobless for too long.

Mentai 12th August 2009, 06:45

I like the guys at GRIN, even if I'm not a fan of their games. I would've thought their two movie titles would have kept them afloat, guess not.

SMIFFYDUDE 12th August 2009, 15:54

Although ive heared of the games i've never of heared GRIN. Funny since they were founded in '97

Edvuld 13th August 2009, 00:31

A friend of mine that worked in the Gothenburg office unfortunatly got laid off earlier this year. Too bad, it really seemed like it was the dream job to have if you're into that stuff...