Three months after Microsoft announced its closure, Hi-Fi Rush studio Tango Gameworks has found a new home with PUBG publisher Krafton. In an announcement today, the South Korean publisher describes the move as its “first significant investment in the Japanese market”.
According to Krafton’s statement the move won’t impact the availability of Tango Gamesworks’ back catalogue, which also includes The Evil Within and Ghostwire: Tokyo. It also says it will collaborate with Xbox and ZeniMax “to ensure a smooth transition and maintain continuity at Tango Gameworks, allowing the talented team to continue developing the Hi-Fi Rush IP and explore future projects”.
Reading between the lines, I think that means Krafton either has no interest in making further The Evil Within and Ghostwire games, or else it hasn’t purchased those IPs. I’ve reached out to Krafton for clarification and will update if I hear back. One thing seems pretty certain, though: Hi-Fi Rush is not dead.
Tango Gameworks was founded in 2010 by horror veteran Shinji Mikami, who left the studio last year before its closure was announced. Hi-Fi Rush was its most critically successful title, despite being a huge departure from the studio’s horror roots.
Microsoft announced the closure of Tango Gameworks in May alongside other ZeniMax studios including Arcane Austin, Alpha Dog Games and Roundhouse Studios. According to Xbox Game Studios head Matt Booty, “These changes are grounded in prioritising high-impact titles and further investing in Bethesda’s portfolio of blockbuster games and beloved worlds which you have nurtured over many decades.”
Apart from PUBG Studios, Krafton also owns The Callisto Protocol studio Striking Distance and Subnautica studio Unknown Worlds, among others.