Yesterday, Disney closed Epic Mickey developer Junction Point Studios, putting all employees–including cofounder Warren Spector–out of a job. So what is next for the longtime designer? He has no idea. In a farewell post on Facebook, Spector praised his colleagues at Junction Point for their work and said he has many fond memories of the past eight years.
“Now it’s time to move on to the next adventure. I honestly don’t know what that will be yet, so don’t ask,” he said. “Anyway, whatever you think of me, or Junction Point, or Disney or the Disney Epic Mickey games–yes, I know we polarized people!–I’ll always look back on the last eight years with nothing but pride.”
Spector recalled that when Junction Point was just getting started, he thought that in the worst scenario, the studio would be a footnote in Disney history. Looking back, Spector said the studio achieved much more than this.
“With Mickey Mouse as our hero, we introduced a mainstream audience to some cool ‘core game’ concepts… and, most especially, we restored Oswald the Lucky Rabbit to a place of prominence,” he said. “We did that. Junction Point.”
It was confirmed yesterday that Spector will not remain a part of the Disney family following the closure of Junction Point. Spector has been in the game business for 30 years. Arguably his most famous work was 2000’s original Deus Ex, which he served as producer on at Ion Studios.
Not only did Disney close Junction Point yesterday, but the House of Mouse’s game division also cut 50 jobs across several studios as part of an effort to meet “market demands.” The company is currently focusing on Disney Infinity, a new toy-based gaming initiative that will compete directly with Activision’s Skylanders series. Activision is unfazed.
