Disney confirmed on Tuesday that it has shut down Texas-based Junction Point studios.
Founded by respected game designer Warren Spector, the game development studio was responsible for both "Disney Epic Mickey" and "Epic Mickey 2: The Power of Two."
At first it wasn't clear whether or not Spector would remain with Disney in some form (and perhaps work on its new "Disney Infinity" title), but it has since been confirmed that he will no longer be employed by the company.
Apparently, most of the Junction Point development staff had been on paid leave since the conclusion of "Epic Mickey 2" development. They were scheduled to return multiple times only to see the date delayed. Tuesday was intended to be the next time they reconvened, though those that showed up at the office only arrived to collect their things.
Speculation about the shuttering intensified on Monday when "Duke Nukem" developer George Broussard tweeted, "The Junction Point rumors have been circulating a while. Warning signs when you give employees two months off after shipping."
Disney released the following statement to several media outlets, commenting on the situation:
"It was with much sadness that we informed our teams today of changes to our Games organization, which include the closure of Junction Point Studios. These changes are part of our ongoing effort to address the fast-evolving gaming platforms and marketplace and to align resources against our key priorities. We're extremely grateful to Warren Spector and the Junction Point team for their creative contributions to Disney with 'Disney Epic Mickey' and 'Disney Epic Mickey 2.'"
The closure comes as the company continues to shift its game development priorities away from consoles and towards mobile devices. Disney's game division has struggled over the years; while the Los Angeles Times reported a respectable showing for the first "Epic Mickey" with over 1.3 million sales, the sequel went nowhere near those numbers, settling in around 270,000 units sold. The company isn't ruling out licensing its characters out to third parties for console games, though it will likely not develop any outside of "Disney Infinity."
