THQ Opening New Studio - The UpStream

We talk about studio closures all the time, it seems. It isn't quite as often we get to announce a company to be opening a new studio, unless we are talking about THQ. Luckily, we are. Apparently, the purchase of Midway San Diego wasn't enough for them, so THQ will be opening a new studio next year in the new gaming promised land, Canada.

THQ Montreal, which will be the publisher's largest studio, will be opening its doors in the middle of 2010, assuming everything goes well. Senior VP Steve DeCosta explains, "Government support, in the form of reimbursable tax credits and other incentives, enabled Montreal to stand out as the best combination of creative talent and favorable economics of the cities we evaluated for our new studio."

THQ isn't the first publisher to make the leap to Canada for the reasons of tax credits. Ubisoft has a major studio there, which is responsible for franchises such as Assassin's Creed. If THQ Montreal can keep up the quality of the other Canadian studios, this will be a very profitable studio for THQ. I guess we will find out when their first game hits shelves in 2013.