Payload Studios announces layoffs – 25% of staff affected
Payload Studios, developers of TerraTech and TerraTech Worlds, have announced that the studio will be facing redundancies affecting around 25% of their staff.
The studio’s founder and CEO Russ Clarke has shared the news in a LinkedIn post in which he cites the current state of the games industry and ensures fans that the studio’s games will continue to be supported.
“With a heavy heart, I have to report that Payload has not managed to avoid the struggles affecting the wider games industry, and we have now confirmed a round of redundancies affecting about 25% of the team.
“We tried very hard to avoid this, and I won’t pretend that we got everything right over the last few years – but ultimately the games market has been very tough in recent times, and shows little sign of getting easier. Small independents like us have no protection from this, other than ‘nailing it’ every time, which is much easier said than done.
“Payload will carry on, and bounce back from this, I firmly believe, but it’s a hard road and it will stay hard for a good while longer. TerraTech and TerraTech Worlds will continue to be maintained and developed without interruption – we thank our wonderful community for their support, and we wish the best to those amazing co-workers with whom we have shared this incredible journey, but must now regretfully part ways.”
The games industry has seen waves of layoffs across the last few yearsThe entire games industry has been under immense pressure over the last couple of years, with layoffs and closures affecting companies from huge triple-A studios like Arkane Austin to smaller indie companies like KeokeN. The gaming press has also faced challenges, with the magazine Game Informer shutting down after 33 years just earlier this month.
Tensions are high within the gaming industry as professionals battle with the evergrowing threats of layoffs and the specter of artificial intelligence threatening to replace jobs.
Featured image credit: Payload Studio
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