Today, Avalanche Studios has announced that they will be laying off 50 (or roughly 9%) workers and closing two of its five development studio locations.
Avalanche Studios has decided to make an unfortunate announcement today detailing plans for the future of their company. These plans will move forward without two of their studio locations and roughly 9% of their workforce, as the studio has announced their New York and Montreal locations are being shuttered. The workers who staffed these locations are also reportedly getting the boot according to a brief statement on the studios’ website. Interestingly, the studio did not mention that this would affect current software development.
The statement from Avalanche Studios reads “This means we’ll be parting ways with 50 valued friends and colleagues, which represents roughly 9% of Avalanchers worldwide” following with “”This is an exceptionally difficult decision, but we believe it’s necessary to ensure a stable and sustainable future for the company” and “Our focus is now on supporting all Avalanchers through this challenging time. We’re grateful for the invaluable contributions of those leaving and remain committed to creating incredible gaming experiences for our players.”
This is on brand for this year in gaming. There have been countless layoffs this year and it is only June. PlayStation, Microsoft, and many others have reported solid earnings reports, and follow the reports with staggering layoffs to many divisions in their company. It’s also interesting to note developer Farhan Noor has also kept up the website which catalogues all industry layoffs for the past 3 years, in one tidy spot on Obsidian, the number is alarmingly in the thousands for how many have been laid off this year.
The only game Avalanche Studios is reportedly working on is called Contraband, an open-world smuggler game with only a small teaser trailer available as of this post. Fans can also head to their official studio website for more information of their future plans
