EA: Pandemic Not Closing, But Consolidating

Despite the shuttering of its current Los Angeles-based office and a significant reduction in its workforce, Mercenaries and The Saboteur series developer Pandemic will live on through a "core team," studio owner Electronic Arts tells Shacknews.

"Pandemic Studios and its franchises will be relocated to the EALA facility in nearby Playa Vista," explained the company. "This move has resulted in a reduction in the work force at Pandemic...That said, the Pandemic brand and franchises will continue to live on. A core team of Pandemic developers will move to EALA and continue development on Pandemic games with a focus on quality, cost management and schedule integrity."

The consolidation is part of Electronic Arts' recently revealed cost reduction plan, which aims to save the company roughly $100 million through "the closure of several facilities and a headcount reduction of approximately 1,500 positions." EA acquired Pandemic alongside Mass Effect developer BioWare for $860 million back in 2007.

The fate of Pandemic's two unannounced projects remains unclear, with the studio's long-coming World War II stealth-action game The Saboteur due on December 8.