- Sony Interactive Entertainment announced a global layoff of 900 employees, affecting all studios.
- Jason Schreier reported the cancellation of a game by UK studio Firesprite, part of the layoffs, based on the “Twisted Metal” series.
- Hermen Hulst confirmed layoffs would impact developers like Insomniac and Naughty Dog, with some projects being cancelled due to operational revaluation.
Sony Interactive Entertainment (SIE) announced global layoffs of 900 people, accounting for 8% of its total workforce, affecting all of its studios. Shortly after, Bloomberg journalist Jason Schreier tweeted that as part of the massive layoffs, Sony canceled a service-based game in development by the UK studio Firesprite, based on the classic “Twisted Metal” series. Schreier later updated his post, stating that although sources had indicated the game was close to release, it was still in early development and had not been approved.
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Some ongoing projects are discontinued
The large-scale layoffs naturally result in the discontinuation of some ongoing projects. PlayStation Studios head Hermen Hulst confirmed that the layoffs would affect developers of “Marvel’s Spider-Man” Insomniac, “The Last of Us” Naughty Dog, as well as Sony’s technical, creative, and support teams in the US, with Guerrilla Games, developer of “Horizon,” also impacted. Hulst confirmed that some games were cancelled during a “re-evaluation of our operational approach,” stating that sometimes great ideas don’t translate into great games.
Sony faces failures of service-based games
Sony had high hopes for “service-based” games and had made significant investments in such titles expected to yield long-term profits, but the market for these games is saturated, with many failures. It’s reported that Sony recently cancelled online games based on the “Spider-Man” and “The Last of Us” series.
