BioShock Infinite to Roll Out Last DLC Before Irrational Games Shuts Down, Says Take-Two’s Ken Levine

This publicity photo provided by 2K Games/Irrational Games shows the video game "BioShock Infinite." Irrational Games creative director Ken Levine said Monday, July 29, 2013, that upcoming downloadable content for "BioShock Infinite" would be set in the underwater city of Rapture. (AP Photo/2K Games/Irrational Games)

“BioShock Infinite” developer Irrational Games said that it is shutting down this week, but it will still roll out the final DLC for the game.

The shuttered company’s director, Ken Levine, elaborated on why.

“While I’m deeply proud of what we’ve accomplished together, my passion has turned to making a different kind of game than we’ve done before,” Levine wrote in a blog post. “To meet the challenge ahead, I need to refocus my energy on a smaller team with a flatter structure and a more direct relationship with gamers. In many ways, it will be a return to how we started: a small team making games for the core gaming audience.”

Levine said that he’s not leaving Take-Two, the parent company of 2K Games, which oversees Irrational Games.

He said that Irrational will first “roll out the last DLC for BioShock Infinite.”

“Seventeen years is a long time to do any job, even the best one. And working with the incredible team at Irrational Games is indeed the best job I’ve ever had,” he wrote, adding that he has other opportunities.

“I am winding down Irrational Games as you know it. I’ll be starting a smaller, more entrepreneurial endeavor at Take-Two. That is going to mean parting ways with all but about fifteen members of the Irrational team. There’s no great way to lay people off, and our first concern is to make sure that the people who are leaving have as much support as we can give them during this transition,” he said.

Staff members with Irrational will get “financial support” and will have access to the studio to “say their goodbyes and put together their portfolio.”

“Other Take-Two studios will be on hand to discuss opportunities within the company, and we’ll be hosting a recruiting day where we’ll be giving 3rd party studios and publishers a chance to hold interviews with departing Irrational staff,” Levine continued.

Irrational Games was started by Levine and two other former Looking Glass Studios employees in 1997.

The studio made space-horror game “System Shock 2” in 1999, “Freedom Force” in 2002, “Tribes: Vengeance” in 2004, and later “BioShock” in 2007 before releasing “BioShock: Infinite” last year.