Usually when you are contracted to develop something custom, you do not own the IP but rather the company that you are building it for. I doubt this is any different here.
There are possibilities that it is arranged differently, for example if the IP you are developing can be used multiple times the company that ordered the IP may want to offer you the rights to distribute and use it further, for a discount, but it is very unlikely a game would make sense for this.
> Usually when you are contracted to develop something custom, you do not own the IP but rather the company that you are building it for.
While it can get messy, generally the IP belongs to the original creators unless otherwise stipulated by contract. Most likely, Star Theory gained ownership of the IP created by their employees via employment contracts. The contract between Take Two and Star Theory would then stipulate the conditions underwhich Star Theory gives that IP to Take Two.
How and when that IP gets assigned should be a part of any such contract negotiations and not something you should gloss over or sign blindly.
It would seem one way to protect the contracted company would be the right to withhold releasing the source code until the terms of the contract were met. You may not want to fight that legal battle, but at least it would give the smaller guy some leverage. As it sounds from the article, Star Theory Games doesn't have anything to fight back with.
There are possibilities that it is arranged differently, for example if the IP you are developing can be used multiple times the company that ordered the IP may want to offer you the rights to distribute and use it further, for a discount, but it is very unlikely a game would make sense for this.