2023 was marked, most notably, with numerous layoffs, studio closures, and other pain for the people who make the games we love. By some estimates, more than 7,000 jobs were cut in 2023 alone. Jobs were lost at Xbox, Niantic, EA, Unity, CD Projekt, Ubisoft, Rockstar, Digital Extremes, Epic, Telltale, BioWare, Bungie, CD Projekt Red, Ascendant, Embracer, Amazon, and many more. The reasons for the cuts varied by studio, including big bets that didn’t pay off, general market contraction, low interest rates coming to bear, deals falling through, and more.
Take-Two boss Strauss Zelnick said he believes many companies staffed up too much during the pandemic and are now making tough choices. “I think many of our competitors overbuilt during the enthusiasm of the pandemic and they’re rationalizing now,” he said. “I think we were a little bit more moderate.” For what it’s worth, Take-Two wasn’t immune, as it also cut positions in 2023, though not as extensively as other companies did.
Beyond layoffs, entire studios were shuttered in 2023. Studios that shut down in 2023, citing the current development landscape and other factors, included Mimimi, PixelOpus, Volition, BonusXP, and Tiny Human, among others.
The Swedish gaming giant Embracer had a challenging 2023 as well. It disclosed that it lost a $2 billion deal at the 11th hour from Savvy; this, among other factors, prompted the studio to cut staff, cancel or delay games, and close entire studios. The latest of these is Free Radical Design, the studio behind TimeSplitters, which Embracer said is facing closure before Christmas.
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