Possibility Space, a studio he founded state of decay Creator Jeff Strain has been shut down, according to several people social Media Supports From its former employees.
that April 12 LinkedIn “My company closed today and there are now a lot of amazing, skilled co-workers who are suddenly open for work today,” says Jennifer Lin, who lists her as a DM/Social Systems Manager at Possibility Space on her profile. “Please consider them for any open positions you have in design.” Engineering, Art, Community and other roles I'm also #openforwork and available to chat Thank you!
Email from Strain, obtained by ribbedNicole Carpenter, blames the studio's closure on the decision to cancel his major project, which Strain claims was made after the studio's internal leaks to the press. Email specifically names Kotaku Chief Correspondent Ethan Gash.
Late last week I received a list of topics and questions from Ethan Gatch, a reporter at Kotaku, regarding an article he is writing about Prytania Media and the closure of Crop Circle Games. Much of it was expected, but I was also astonished to see non-public information about the Vonnegut project, disclosures about our publishing partner with details of our business and financial relationship, and details of internal P&L discussions and secret meetings for the whole company. Mr. Gatch specifically credits current employees as his source of information.
Leaks of this type are usually malicious and are made by external hackers, so seeing internal team members under a confidentiality agreement getting involved in this was shocking. Given the company's strict confidentiality and notification obligations, I immediately boarded a plane for in-person meetings with our publishing partner to discuss the impact on the project. During that discussion, our partner expressed a lack of confidence that he wanted to invest the additional resources needed to complete the game, so we mutually agreed to cancel Vonnegut.
As a result of the cancellation of the publishing relationship and after careful consideration, I am closing the space of possibilities. Today is your last day working at Possibility Space and Praytania Media. Your final salary, including pay for working through the end of the day, will be deposited into your account, along with any other required payments, as dictated by your workplace. For employees located outside the United States, today will be the first day of your notice period and is currently scheduled to be the last day of employment on April 19, 2024. However, all non-US employees – like their US counterparts – will have no work obligations after today. In addition, separations of all affiliated employees will be processed through the PEO in accordance with applicable law.
It will take a few additional days to finalize the details of the termination agreement with our publishing partner, calculate our tax, insurance, vendor and contractor obligations, and any other outstanding obligations, and then determine what we can offer in exchange for the termination.
I have retained a global D.C.-based law firm to oversee the winding down of the studio. An employment attorney from that company will shortly follow up with your personal email address with additional details, and this person will be your direct point of contact from now on for all matters related to your employment, including continuation of insurance benefits, severance payments, and/or associated separation agreements. A copy of this email has also been sent to your personal email address.
You may retain your Development Equipment provided that you permanently delete all Company Information, confirm that you have done so in writing, and strictly adhere to existing confidentiality obligations, including proper handling of Company intellectual property and other confidential and proprietary information. This confirmation will be coordinated through the upcoming communications mentioned above.
Starting today I will be stepping away from the gaming industry to focus on my family and taking care of Annie. I wish you all the best as you navigate this complex industry and the challenges and opportunities ahead.
Jeff
Possibility Space was created by Strain under the Prytania Media label (which Strain founded with his wife, Annie Delisi Strain) in 2021.
“Freelance web ninja. Wannabe communicator. Amateur tv aficionado. Twitter practitioner. Extreme music evangelist. Internet fanatic.”