Elixir raises £1 million investment, confirms Evil Genius sequel

British developer Elixir Studios has announced that it has successfully completed a further round of funding, with £1 million being raised, but a small number of redundancies are planned in an internal reshuffle.

The new funding came entirely from existing institutional and private investors, and will be used to provide resources for the firm's projects - with at least three projects currently in the works at the studio.

The company, which now has two released games under its belt - PC titles Republic: The Revolution and Evil Genius - has confirmed that a sequel to Evil Genius is in the works.

It is also working on a major new title for a top US publisher, which was signed 18 months ago and is due for release in 2006, with further details of the game yet to be announced, and is developing a prototype for a next-generation console IP.

"We are very pleased to have closed our planned fund raising and to have the full backing of our shareholders," commented Elixir CEO Mark Hewitt in a statement today. "As a company, we are really focused on forging ahead and completing our next title, which is an extremely exciting and innovative game, with a great publisher, as well as seeing our other plans come to fruition."

However, the firm is likely to see a small round of redundancies in the coming months, with an internal reshuffle of its teams likely to see a headcount reduction affecting around 15 staff members, it has admitted.

The company, which was founded in 1998 by former Bullfrog game designer Demis Hassabis, currently employs over 60 staff at its North London offices.