Tabula Rasa to move, Dungeon Runners to die

Rumor is going around that NCSoft is going to close its Austin game development studio and lay off all staff there. Tabula Rasa is said to be handed over to Seattle-based Arena.net (Guild Wars) and Dungeon Runners apparently just couldn't run fast enough. This comes as a bit of a surprise overall, because Tabula Rasa got a mention in the Q2 reports - something generally considered a good sign.

Future development of Tabula Rasa will reportedly be handed over to Seattle-based Guild Wars creator Arena.net, with Massively reporting that the title may meet a similar fate as Dungeon Runners if it "fails to turn the tide of subscribers and expectations." It has also learned that any future collaboration between NCsoft and Tabula Rasa principals Richard and Robert Garriot will be "limited in scope," due to a souring of relations with the Korean management team over their title's lackluster performance.

With regard to City of Heroes, a source at NCsoft's Bay Area studio confirmed with us that its development staff will be completely unaffected by the events transpiring in Austin, saying that the title's status is "sound."

The Ten Ton Hammer staff will try to determine if there's any validity to this news. Keep your eyes peeled for updates on this story!

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