Are Crytek’s financial woes fact or fiction?

In an industry where either boom or bust is always just one game release away, rarely a day goes by when there aren’t rumors about a company’s financial woes. This time the rumors are about Crytek.

Crtyek is the multinational company behind titles like Crysis and the new Homefront, among other games in development. Rumors, and I stress the word rumors, have started popping up about delinquent paychecks at a number of their international studios. The timing ranges from a couple of weeks to a couple of months, with an anonymous source at Crytek UK telling Kotaku they hadn’t been paid since April.

Naturally, Crytek’s PR department says everything is okay. Then again, I’m sure THQ maintained the “everything is okay” line as they closed studios, lost licenses, and ultimately shut down.

Could we be in the early stages of Crytek falling apart and becoming the next THQ? While issues with paying staff are a warning sign, all we have are rumors thanks to unnamed sources claiming delinquent paychecks. At the moment, all anyone can do is watch and hope that staff and popular franchise find their way to new homes should the worst case scenario occur.