More Gaming Industry Upheaval

As ICv2.com and OgreCave.com report, we’ve had more shake-ups in the tabletop industry. Last week, Upper Deck laid off another 40 people on top of the others they let go earlier in the year.

On the bright side, a couple of companies have already stepped forward with plans to rescue the games of WizKids. The guys behind SaveHeroClix.com formed Piñata Games to spearhead their effort, while my friends at Catalyst Game Labs put in a bid of their own.

While there may be other suitors, both Piñata and Catalyst have excellent claims as heirs to WizKids’ games. (Piñata’s founders helped run WizKids until it folded, and Catalyst has licensed a number of WizKids games for RPGs.) I suspect both efforts may find that the current credit crunch hampers their efforts, but I wish them both the best of luck. Honestly, if Piñata wound up with HeroClix and Catalyst got the rest, I’d be thrilled—and hopefully they would be too.