Bleak times have hit more than one Activision-owned studio today. Following word of massive redundancies at Bizarre Creations, the company confirms that it has closed Budcat, resulting in the termination of “approximately 88 positions.”

Acquired by Acti in 2008, a year after it picked up Bizarre, the Iowa-based studio was largely responsible for porting several Guitar Hero titles to PS2.

In an effort to ease the transition post-closure, the publishing juggernaut says it is working to redirect affected employees, which represent 1 percent of its workforce, “to other parts of the company where possible, as well as offering them outplacement counseling services.” Full statement is after the break.

We continue to streamline our music development resources to ensure that they are aligned against our slate and strategic goals. As a result, we are implementing a targeted reduction in jobs in our Quality Assurance team in California and closing our Budcat studio in Iowa. Budcat has been a great partner to Activision and has created a lasting impact on the Guitar Hero franchise.

Approximately 88 positions, or approximately 1% of our global workforce, will be impacted by these reductions. We are working to redirect those employees that are impacted to other parts of the company where possible, as well as offering them outplacement counseling services.

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