Telltale officially confirmed that it will be closing down in statement, but rumors were circulating about the impending closure all day today. In blog post, Kevin Bruner, the co-founder and former CEO of Telltale, who parted ways from them last year, posted his thoughts on the closure.
He noted that he was saddened at the studio closing down, pointing out that he took pride in its existence and its products, as well as its culture and its tendency to green light the kinds of projects other developers might never have even considered. He expressed his sadness at all the people who will be losing their jobs, but expressed a degree of happiness that the Telltale brand of storytelling will live on even after the studio is gone- after all, Telltale pioneered a style of storytelling that multiple other studios, such as Dontnod with Life is Strange, have picked up on.
Bruner had actually filed lawsuit against Telltale earlier this year, which can’t have helped their financial position, which Telltale cites as one of the reason for the closure. Whatever Bruner’s role in the developer’s creation or destruction, I hope the people affected will be able to find gainful employment quickly again.