Staff 'On Notice', Krome Confirms

Widespread media reports yesterday of rocky straits at major Aussie developer Krome Studios appear to be well-founded: The company has confirmed that many of its jobs are in peril, and that its Adelaide studio -- while not closed, as previously reported -- is on four-week notice. "As we have seen by other recent announcements, the games industry is still going through economic challenges which Krome is not immune from," said the company in a statement to GameSpot Australia. "These times are challenging and as a result, we have put some of our staff on notice pending the outcome of a number of upcoming projects." "It is important to note that this action has not affected the development of our current projects, both announced and unannounced, which we are continuing to work on," continues the company. Krome also says it "remains firmly committed to the future of all three studios," which in addition to Adelaide include its Melbourne and Brisbane facilities. Last year Krome claimed status as Australia's largest independent developer, with over 400 full-time staffers. But the company has seen numerous cutbacks since then, making layoff rounds in November 2009 and again in April 2010. Krome's current troubles directly follow LucasArts' announcement that the PSP version of Force Unleashed II has been canned -- although it was never confirmed that Krome, developer of the PSP version of the prior edition, was connected.