Disney closes Junction Point

The rumours were true. Disney are indeed closing down Austin based Junction Point Studios, and their official statement reads as follows:

"It was with much sadness that we informed our teams today of changes to our Games organization, which include the closure of Junction Point Studios. These changes are part of our ongoing effort to address the fast-evolving gaming platforms and marketplace and to align resources against our key priorities. We're extremely grateful to Warren Spector and the Junction Point team for their creative contributions to Disney with Disney Epic Mickey and Disney Epic Mickey 2."

Warren Spector, who served as both studio head and vice president at Disney Interactive Studios, has indicated on his LinkedIn profile that he is looking for new employment. Over on Facebook, Spector wrote a post about the closure where he reached out and thanked a lot of people for the Junction Point years here are a couple of excerpts:

<i>"Yes, it's true. The Junction Point journey is over. To all those who've asked, or want to ask, I'm sad but excited for the future.

JPS had a good eight year run. I got to work with some amazing people on some amazing projects. I've had some of the most magical times of my life, fulfilling several life-long dreams. I've gotten to know Disney fans and Disney cast members, gotten hands on with Disney's history, walked where Walt walked... "Magical" really is the only word."<i>

It's been a rough few months for the Austin development scene with Vigil Games and Junction Point closing, and significant rounds off layoffs at Bioware Austin, Zynga Austin and Lightbox Interactive. However, Zenimax opened up Battlecry Studios recently, and Crytek announced plans for an Austin based US studio following the demise of Vigil - so there are new opportunities opening up.