Virtuos, the studio that brought the highly touted Oblivion Remaster to consoles this year, is now facing layoffs despite continued success and upcoming projects.
According to a post on Bluesky, the developer behind the hit Oblivion Remastered, Virtuos, has gotten substantially smaller due to layoffs. The news broke from co-founder of French publication Origami, Gauthier Andres, and was corroborated by Virtuos’ own public statement published this morning. The statement titled “Adapting for the Future of Game Development” reads “Virtuos is evolving to meet the changing needs of our partners and the industry,” continuing with “This evolution involves a rebalancing of roles across our studios and geographies. Approximately 7% of Virtuos’ global workforce was affected,” due to layoffs conducted today.
The studio is responsible for notable success recently, as Oblivion Remastered launched to a “mostly positive” reception from fans on Steam. The development studio has also helped develop the recently announced Cyberpunk 2077 Update 2.3, which unlocks new vehicles for gamers to tinker with, and currently has Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater‘s release (which is close to its August 28 finish line) to get out the door. With everything going on for the developer, 7% staff reduction reaches ~300 staffers.
The layoffs are detailed in depth by the announcement, and it says those affected are “primarily in teams facing lower occupancy and slower demand due to structural shifts in the industry. This includes about 200 roles in Asia and 70 roles in Europe, including fewer than 10 in France, where the core team working on Oblivion Remastered is located.” It was reported “over 4 million of you have already ventured into Cyrodiil with Oblivion Remastered” by Bethesda on X, three days after release. The X post can be seen below.
Despite the layoff announcement, Virtuos said “We are grateful for the contributions of those impacted. We are providing separation packages, career transition assistance, and opportunities for redeployment across our global network where possible. The company’s immediate focus is on managing this transition with care, transparency, and respect” about those affected.
