Hudson Soft's US arm closing
American subsidiary of Japanese publisher closing its doors after parent company is completely bought out by Konami.
Last month, Hudson Soft made headlines for being completely bought out by Konami. The Metal Gear Solid publisher had had a controlling stake in the smaller firm for nearly six years and had effectively been its parent corporation.
However, like all too many buyouts, Konami's purchase of Hudson Soft's remaining shares has been followed by layoffs at the smaller company. In this case, it is American subdivision Hudson Entertainment that is the focus of the cutbacks, as it is apparently being closed down entirely. According to a blog post by brand manager and Web producer Morgan Haro, the subsidiary is being shuttered at the end of the month. (Haro also confirmed the closure on his Twitter account.)
"It was revealed today that all of Hudson [Entertainment]'s previously planned projects have been canceled and that our office will be closing its doors at the end of February," wrote Haro. Hudson Entertainment was founded in 2003, eight years after Hudson Soft's previous US subsidiary, Hudson Soft USA, had its doors closed.
In an extended opinion piece on his personal blog, Haro blamed the closure on the increasingly competitive gaming market, saying: "While Hudson [Entertainment] has been around for years, it's clear that we didn't have the money muscle to bring on big talent, and create big experiences. In this current landscape, it's tough now to have companies that find a place somewhere right in the middle. You're either a hit, or an indie developer looking to be a hit."
Haro emphasized in his post that Hudson Soft's Japanese operations will continue unabated by Hudson Entertainment's closure. Recent releases by the company include Lost in Shadow for the Wii and Deca Sports Freedom for the Xbox 360's Kinect motion-sensing system.
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