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Team Bondi sells off assets to KMM Games, staff given option to move

Citing an anonymous source, Develop has reported that Team Bondi's remaining assets are to be sold off to another local games studio, Kennedy Miller Mitchell (KMM) Games.

An insider who claims to engage with both Sydney-based game companies has informed Develop that all the game IP and remaining assets belonging to the L.A Noire developer is being transferred to KMM. Team Bondi's game IP, however, does not include the critically acclaimed L.A Noire property which belongs to Rockstar Games. Depth Analysis, the sister company to Team Bondi that's behind the MotionScan facial technology seen in L.A Noire is not thought to be affected.

The approximately 35 remaining Team Bondi staff have formally been given the option by Team Bondi studio boss, Brendan McNamara, to join KMM Games or accept a severance package.

Giving credence to Develop's report is the news that McNamara and a few Team Bondi staff had been spotted touring the offices of Doctor D / KMM Games just last week. Rumours have since been circulating that Team Bondi had entered administration or gone bankrupt.

It looks to be the final chapter for one of Australia's most enigmatic games studios, a company which had only recently celebrated the critical success of their ambitious and 7-year in development game title, L.A Noire. After receiving numerous rounds of bad PR by ommitting 100+ staff credits in L.A Noire, the long work hours and workplace abuses leaked emails on the company crunchtime policy and the soured relationship with publisher Rockstar Games, the saga may have spooked other publishers thinking about taking on the developer for a new project.