A rumor currently circulating throughout the gaming community early today appears to have been confirmed: United Front Games, the Canadian-based development team behind titles such as ModNation Racers, Sleeping Dogs, Triad Wars, and SMASH+GRAB, has closed its doors. A thread on NeoGAF, started today by the moderator bishoptl, is the earliest source for this and simply states that the news was "starting to leak out now", with no explanation given as to why the development team had closed down

This news comes to us on the heels of the discovery that SMASH+GRAB, United Front Games' recently launched Steam Early Access title, is no longer available for purchasing from the Steam store. This is a shock as SMASH+GRAB just held a successful free play weekend.

TechRaptor has reached out to United Front Games for comment both on the future of the development team, and the removal of SMASH+GRAB. While we haven't received any responses to our inquiries at the time of writing this article, Jen Timms, a producer at United Front Games, has just tweeted out the following message:

https://twitter.com/Scarlettjen/status/788195778602774529

While Jen doesn't give a reason for United Front Games closure, this at least confirms that the development team is no more. Additionally, Game Informer has apparently independently confirmed this story.

https://twitter.com/HurdyIV/status/788192762965422080

We will update this article when we receive any official reply from United Front Games or when more information becomes publicly available.

Stay tuned to TechRaptor for further information on this closure.

Quick Take

This is definitely disheartening news to hear, especially considering how well-received

was despite being an Early Access game. Our best wishes go out to the development team and hope that they continue to create the games we all know and enjoy.

SMASH+GRAB

Why do you think United Front Games has closed down? Do you expect this to have an impact on the gaming industry? Let us know in the comment section below.