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Ensemble: "We were simply too expensive"

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Ensemble Studio's inability to hit deadlines or budget restraints led to its downfall, long-time staffer Paul Bettner said at GDC last week.

"The reality is that every single game we shipped took twice as long as we said it was going to take, and cost twice as much to make," he said.

"Microsoft is a public company, they answer to their shareholders, and we were simply too expensive."

Bettner added that a "workaholic" culture also contributed to the outfit's demise.

"I watched this happen and I did almost nothing to stop it. As an employee, and later as a manager, I didn't take a stand. I just kept hoping for that next high," he said.

It was announced in September that RTS stalwart Ensemble was to close after the completion of Halo Wars.

Thanks, Eurogamer.

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Patrick Garratt

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Patrick Garratt is a games media legend - and not just by reputation. He was named as such in the UK's 'Games Media Awards', the equivalent of a lifetime achievement award. After garnering experience on countless gaming magazines, he joined Eurogamer and later split from that brand to create VG247, putting the site on the map with fast, 24-hour a day coverage, and assembling the site's earliest editorial teams. He retired from VG247, and the games industry, in 2017.

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