More cost-cutting appears to be in progress at UTV's console gaming business Ignition Entertainment. After cutting headcount at its London office, it appears that its Florida, USA based studio is next: Develop reports that 70 developers have been fired, and the Reich project has been cancelled, and that one of its two US studios will be shut. Apparently, the Florida office was working on Reich, which may have been cancelled. Reich is one of the two UTV gaming IP's, alongwith El Shaddai, expected to be released this fiscal. UTV hasn't still confirmed to us whether Ignition CEO Vijay Chadha is still with the company. We've asked UTV for clarifications on the status of Reich, its Florida office, the headcount reduction (and cost-cutting) planned across geographies. UTV has placed some major bets on the console gaming business, having invested as much as Rs. 555.85 crore as of the quarter ending June 30th 2010 (financials, report), much of it in Ignition. In July, the company had said that Ignition needs more funds, and it was going to explore the option of bringing a strategic investor on board, through equity dilution. UTV had earlier clarified to MediaNama that another project, WarDevil, wasn't being shut, but some work outsourced. The company had then declined to comment on whether Chadha is still with the company, the number of layoffs in the UK office, and how much more investment will be required for WarDevil. We'll update this with more info, in case UTV responds. Further Reading - Ignition…
