In a disheartening turn of events for the gaming industry, People Can Fly, the studio responsible for the2021 hit Outriders, has recently laid off over 30 employees. This unexpected move wasunveiled through Kotaku’s investigative report, revealing that the downsizing was exclusively directed at the team working on the undisclosed game, Project Gemini, set to be published by Square Enix.
Adam Alker, the development director at People Can Fly, confirmed the layoffs, citing budget constraints and a reduced scope for Project Gemini as the driving factors behind the decision. Alker expressed gratitude in an email to the affected employees, acknowledging their hard work and contributions while extending well wishes to them for their future endeavors in the gaming industry.
This unfortunate incident adds to the growing list of job cuts in 2024, surpassing 3,500 industry-wide. Notable casualties include Riot Games, which recently laid off 530 employees; CI Games, cutting 10% of its staff; Unity’s plan to lay off 1,800 by March; and Twitch’s layoff of 500 employees. Discord, PTW, Thunderful Group, and Behaviour Interactive are among the other casualties, collectively contributing to the industry-wide layoffs exceeding 10,000 in the previous year.
The wave of layoffs in 2024 follows a disturbing trend, with major players like Microsoft, Striking Distance Studios, BioWare, Ascendant Studios, and Epic Games also parting ways with significant portions of their workforce in the preceding months. The domino effect continued with Naughty Dog, Telltale Games, Media Molecule, Amazon Games, Ubisoft, Bungie, and Digital Bros all announcing substantial layoffs in the latter part of the year.
December saw the closure of Embracer Group’s reformed TimeSplitters studio, Free Radical Design, and Saints Row developer Volition Games faced a similar fate earlier in the year. Adding to the gloom, Hasbro, the owner of Dungeons & Dragons and Magic: The Gathering, laid off 1,100 employees just weeks before the winter holidays.
The ramifications of these widespread layoffs are expected to reverberate throughout the gaming industry for years to come. The Game Informer staff empathizes with everyone affected by these distressing layoffs and studio closures, standing in solidarity with those facing uncertain futures in the ever-evolving landscape of game development.
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