Crackdown 2 developer Ruffian Games has confirmed it’s been acquired by Rockstar and said it’s excited to work on the GTA firm’s entertainment properties.
As revealed in company house documents earlier this week,Ruffian has been renamed Rockstar Dundeeand Rockstar parentTake-Twohas taken a majority stake in the company.
“We are thrilled to haveRuffianjoin theRockstar Gamesfamily,” said Rockstar founderSam Houserin a prepared statement. “The Ruffian team are a talented addition to Rockstar’s global studios, and we look forward to working together on future projects.”
Billy Thompson, co-founder of Ruffian and one of the original GTA designers, added: “We are incredibly excited to be joining the Rockstar team. Not only do we have the opportunity to work on some of the most successful entertainment properties in the world, but Rockstar’s investment in our studio is a great sign for the continued expansion of game development here in Scotland.”
Very proud to say@RockstarGameshave acquired@RuffianGames, we will now be known as Rockstar Dundee.Really looking forward to the future, and making some great stuff for you lot to play. 😃Thanks to all my family, friends and workmates who joined me on the ride at Ruffian.
Founded in 2008, Ruffian partnered withMicrosoftto work on the Crackdown series, and with343 IndustriesonHalo: Reach from the Halo Master Chief Collection.
The studio’s team of around 40 people have experience working on early Rockstar titles from the Grand Theft Auto and Manhunt series.
Ruffian announced last year that it was working onmultiple games alongside Grand Theft Auto developer Rockstar.
New job listingsadvertised by the studio asked for individuals with “generalised experience in multiplayer action games developed forPC,Xbox One,PlayStation 4and future platforms.”
A recentKotakureport claimed work on the unannouncednext GTA title was “still early in development”and that it could be “moderately sized” upon release, partly to reduce employee stress and crunch, before being regularly expanded over time.
