Author Richard Morgan, best known for his cyberpunk sci-fi novel Altered Carbon, revealed on his blog that he's been working with Electronic Arts as a consultant on three upcoming games (via A Dribble of Ink). He explains that the relationship started with an email from John Miles at EA about a year ago. A meeting with Miles and fellow EA employees Jeff Gamon and Colin Robinson resulted in an offer to write the script for a project already underway and to consult on future games. Part of the deal included heading off to Berlin the next week and since it seems he accepted we can assume that was his next stop.

While Morgan does not disclose what projects he might be on the names and locations offer plenty of clues. Miles, who initially reached out to him, recently has been working with the EA Partners group which includes developers Crytek and Starbreeze. The quick trip to Berlin put him only a short train ride away from Crytek's headquarters in Frankfurt. Morgan's gritty style would definitely fit well with the Crysis franchise. But hold on, before we forget, Crytek also bought developer Free Radical earlier this year, including the rights to the TimeSplitters IP, and kept the studio in the UK running. That sounds like two perfect fits already.

As to whether Starbreeze is involved that seems too be out. They're currently working on a Bourne game for EA. More likely, given Morgan's strengths, is that he would be working on the Mirror's Edge sequel Patrick Soderlund said a small team was working on already back at E3. So there you go, three games: writing a new TimeSplitters (4), and consulting on the next Crysis game and Mirrors Edge 2.

UPDATE: Or, as Chris just pointed out to me, maybe Starbreeze isn't out of the picture. We reported earlier this year that EA planned to revive Syndicate. At the time rumors pointed to Starbreeze being the studio tabbed to take the project.

As developer Free Radical has fired around 75% of its staff--that's about 140 employees--the chances of ex-employees leaking unreleased media is roughly 100%.

Case in point, these character models from TimeSplitters 4 via ex-artist Richard Smith, the same fellow that leaked those images from Star Wars Battlefront 3.

The above models join the other TimeSplitters 4 pictures, below, that former artist Nick Carver briefly posted, which were then archived and republished by Kotaku.

The fate of TimeSplitters 4 is hazy after Free Radical's recent bankruptcy and lay offs. PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 editions of the latest entry in the humorous shooting series were speculated, but never confirmed.

The studio was said to have "a number of cool projects in development--two of which are getting quite a lot of publisher interest already," according to an anonymous staffer.

After declaring bankruptcy last week, Haze and TimeSplitters series developer Free Radical Design has now laid off "around 140" of its 185 employees. The studio's staff had been paid through the end of December, which is when the cuts will take effect.

"We're still trading on with the remaining 40 or so employees, have advertised the business for sale and have received some strong interest," ReSolve representative Cameron Gunn told 1UP. ReSolve had been tasked with assessing Free Radical's "financial position" and helping the developer weather its troubled times.

Free Radical was known to be working on TimeSplitters 4, and rumored to be developing Star Wars: Battlefront III for LucasArts. An anonymous staff member recently informed 1UP that the studio had "a number of cool projects in development--two of which are getting quite a lot of publisher interest already."

Update: Free Radical has not closed, but has instead gone into administration, which will allow the company to continue operating despite an inability to pay its debts.

"It's business as usual, although we have asked that almost all of the employees apart from a skeleton crew remain at home," Cameron Gunn, an employee of administration firm Resolve Partners, told local newspaper This Is Nottinham.

All of Free Radical's 185 employees have been paid through the end of December. The studio hopes to make an announcement regarding its fate later this month, following an analysis of its "financial position" by Resolve Partners.

Along with TimeSplitters 4, rumors suggest Free Radical was working on Star Wars: Battlefront III for LucasArts, with some claiming that the title has since been moved to Star Wars Battlefront: Renegade Squadron developer Rebellion.

Original Story: According to a report by GamesIndustry.biz and numerous other sources, UK developer Free Radical Design is closing its doors. The... Read more

Over on its official website, developer Free Radical has released the first pieces of concept art from the next entry in its whimsical first-person shooter series TimeSplitters.

"It's funny, it's frantic and it'll do things you've never seen before! No, not naked girls, even better than that!," the studio teased. "This game will take the first person shooter to gaming nirvana. Save the world or die laughing, Timesplitters 4 is coming to getcha!"

Free Radical has yet to announce platforms or a release date for TimeSplitters 4, though the first word of it emerged in a PlayStation 3 magazine. Free Radical's last game, Haze, was originally slated to hit PC, PS3 and Xbox 360, but later became a PS3 exclusive.