Microsoft announced today that Microsoft Game Studios is opening a European branch. The branch is being opened to more effectively communicate with Microsoft's European studios and partners, including Lionhead, Rare, Remedy, Real Time Worlds, and Bizarre Creations. It will be based in Reading, UK, hometown of Ricky Gervais (who is actually featured in Microsoft training videos). The new branch will be headed by Phil Spencer, currently Microsoft Game Studios' general manager. Spencer will retain his current position while heading up the new European branch.Hopefully, this means we'll see Fable 2 before 2009.
If you haven't had your fill of Halo 3 news this week, then check out MTV's video interview with Microsoft's GM of publishing of first party titles Phil Spencer. Phil talks about everything Halo related including Peter Jackson's upcoming project, Halo Wars, and the Halo 3 beta. He discusses where they are at with all their projects, how involved they are with Mr. Jackson, how the Halo Wars RTS came to be, and gave us no news on the beta that we didn't already know. It's good to hear about the status of the other Halo projects as it looks like we'll be hearing about Halo Wars in the near future. RTS FTW, SS! (For those of you who aren't l33t, that translates to "real-time strategy for the win, super sweetness!")
