After split with Xbox, Hitman developer IO will "continue to develop" Project Fantasy independently, but they're closing their Istanbul Studio

Project Fantasy takes flight

Last week brought the quality that Xbox had dropped their enactment for Project Fantasy the, er, phantasy task successful improvement astatine IO Interactive. The Hitman shaper announced they would stay "100% committed" to the game, and guarantee "This fantastic beingness volition spot the airy of day", but they besides acknowledged that determination would request to beryllium layoffs.

IOI person present confirmed that they person been capable to regain afloat ownership of Project Fantasy and they volition "continue to make and money it independently". But that accumulation has travel with a important cost: the closure of their Istanbul office.

"Following the extremity of our outer concern concern connected Project Fantasy, IOI has regained afloat ownership of the task and our IP," IOI said successful a connection published to X. "We volition proceed to make and money it independently amongst our different projects. With this context, we had to find a caller equilibrium for the semipermanent aboriginal of the studio, focused connected the occurrence of our main interior halfway titles alternatively of outer projects and imaginable mobile crippled derivatives. This has meant making changes arsenic good arsenic projected changes crossed our studios: the closure of our Istanbul workplace and starting a process to portion ways with colleagues who person been a meaningful portion of what makes IOI what it is."

Opened successful 2023, IOI described the workplace arsenic an effort to "establish a hub for AAA crippled improvement successful the region".

IOI assertion this closure volition let them to "retain the semipermanent aboriginal of IO Interactive arsenic 1 of the precise fewer afloat autarkic AAA developer and publisher, arsenic good arsenic to springiness Project Fantasy the champion imaginable instauration to win nether our ain passionateness and direction."

There are important risks to taking implicit work with Project Fantasy, adjacent for a workplace similar IO Interactive, which are 1 of the fewer autarkic studios putting retired AAA games. While World of Assassination is simply a large occurrence that continues to merchantability copies, it's casual to hide that the archetypal play of the Hitman reboot was made portion IO was a subsidiary of Square Enix and the sequel, made aft buying backmost their independence, was funded by Warner Bros. Even Hitman 3 was partially funded with a 12-month exclusivity woody with the Epic Games Store.

007: First Light shows IOI tin person occurrence with a bid different than Hitman, but Bond's evidently a hugely recognised name. So the enactment of Xbox apt made Project Fantasy a overmuch much palatable risk. And, caller years person shown that IO are besides susceptible of having costly misses. IOI moved into publishing with past year's Mindseye, the unfastened satellite shooter from Rockstar alum Leslie Benzies. After unspeakable reviews, respective rounds of layoffs, and Benzies making allegations of saboteurs moving against his game, IO yet parted ways with the company.

Among each the unspeakable quality of Microsoft's layoffs, it's been a affirmative to spot studios spun retired alternatively of shuttered and ownership of a task similar Project Fantasy fixed backmost to IO Interactive alternatively than cancelled, but it's precise overmuch a double-edged sword.