Rockstar Games is opening a new LA-based studio

The Grand Theft Auto developer appears to have opened a new studio in Los Angeles focused on motion capture, most likely as a result of its acquisition of Standard Deviation.

The details:

• The discovery was made by Twitter user @morsmutual_, who shared that Rockstar's careers page now includes a listing for an "Electrical Engineer" at a new location called "Rockstar LA. The engineer's responsibilities include designing and building motion capture equipment for future projects.
• According to a new page on the company's official website, the studio is most likely a rebranding of Standard Deviation, a company specializing in motion capture software and hardware that was recently acquired by Rockstar. It may also be related to GTA RP developer Cfx.re, which was recently acquired by the studio earlier this month.
• It is unknown what projects the studio will be working on, but fans are hoping that the rumored Bully sequel is in the works. Another likely title is LA Noire 2, as the original game is one of the most notable examples of facial capture being used as a core component of a game, with players able to read certain visual cues to detect when someone is lying in a detective case.

More gaming news:

• Xbox head Phil Spencer stated that he would "love to find solutions" to the possibility of hundreds of Xbox 360-era titles being lost to time when the Xbox 360 storefront closes in July 2024. Currently, approximately 220 titles will be rendered unplayable following the closure as they have not been ported to other platforms.
• Charles Martinet, who provided the voices for Mario, Luigi, Wario, and Waluigi in Nintendo's games, has announced that he will no longer be doing any work for the characters and will instead serve as the company's "Mario Ambassador. Martinet and Mario creator Shigeru Miyamoto will soon release a video honoring the actor's accomplishments after more than 25 years.