Supermassive Games, the UK developer responsible for well-liked narrative horror games like Until Dawn, The Quarry, and The Dark Pictures Anthology is the latest studio to be hit with the layoff bug afflicting the industry. According to Bloomberg’s Jason Schreier, around 90 employees, which represents nearly a third of Supermassive’s 300-strong staff, have been laid off. Supermassive themselves acknowledged the layoffs via the following statement…
“It’s no secret that the games industry is currently facing significant challenges, and unfortunately we aren’t immune to this. After much deliberation and with deep regret, we are undertaking a reorganisation of Supermassive Games. As a result, we are entering into a period of consultation, which we anticipate will result in the loss of some of our colleagues.
This is not a decision that’s been taken lightly, with many efforts made to avoid this outcome. We are all too aware of how unsettling and difficult this process is going to be for all our employees and will be working closely with all those involved to ensure the process is conducted as respectfully and compassionately as possible.
We’re committed to focusing our efforts on our core strengths and upcoming titles to ensure the continued sustainability of the company.”
Needless to say, this is a heavy blow to a mid-sized developer like Supermassive, particularly one with a lot on its plate. In addition to a new entry in the Dark Pictures series, the sci-fi-themed Directive 8020, they’re also working on Little Nightmares III and The Casting of Frank Stone, a narrative-driven game set in the Dead by Daylight universe. As of now, we don’t know if these layoffs will affect any of these projects (development is likely already well-advanced or even completed on some of them). A remake of Supermassive’s original cult-classic title Until Dawn is in the works for Sony, but it’s being developed by new studio Ballistic Moon.
Any Supermassive fans out there? What’s your favorite game from the studio? Do you see a future for the company or is this just the start of their troubles?
