Team Bondi is no more and Whore of the Orient is dead as well, but the legacy of the Australian L.A. Noire dev lives on now in the newly formed Intuitive Game Studios, MCV reports. The newly formed Sydney-based indie is headed up by two Bondi vets: L.A. Noire design lead Alex Carlyle and Noire storyboard collaborator Kelly Baigent.
The Team Bondi folks haven’t had the easiest time since the release of L.A. Noire in 2011. Rockstar Games cut ties with the studio after allegations surfaced that writer/director Brendan McNamara subjected the team to harsh working conditions. The studio folded and was eventually absorbed into KMM, a multimedia production company that is partially owned by Mad Max creator George Miller.
KMM set the former Bondi team to work on Whore of the Orient, a period piece that unfortunately never made it far enough into production for anyone outside of the studio to see and report on it. KMM reportedly laid off the Bondi staff in April 2013 and is currently on an active hunt for investors.
Intuitive Game Studios seemingly stands apart from all of this. There is nothing more to go on than a Facebook page, a Twitter feed, and a very minimal official website. Carlyle intends to stay in Australia, as he told MCV, with the goal of building a “small studio” that will build up a reputation by working with contractors rather than staffers to start with.
