Digital Extremes is the latest studio to announce layoffs in an industry that has seen thousands of jobs severed this year. The exact number of roles made redundant was not immediately made available at the time the news broke. But Digital Extremes has now confirmed the number.
“We can confirm we have made the difficult decision to cease operations of our external projects division,” Digital Extremes told Eurogamer. “We had to say goodbye to a number of hardworking and highly valuable team members as a result, and we’re working with Airship Syndicate to transition full control of Wayfinder to them in the coming months.”
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Just last month, James Schmalz stepped aside as the CEO of Digital Extremes. He was replaced by Steve Sinclair, the former creative director. Sinclair will continue to oversee the development of Digital Extremes’ next game titled Soulframe.
Airship Syndicate was full of appreciation for Digital Extreme’s decision to hand over Wayfinder. Through a post on X (formerly Twitter), Airship Syndicate revealed that they owned the Wayfinder IP and will continue to develop the game.
“We thank Digital Extremes for helping jumpstart Wayfinder and getting us to this point in our journey,” came the message through the official Wayfinder handle. “Airship Syndicate owns the Wayfinder IP, and we have no plans to stop developing the game now. We look forward to continuing to grow the game alongside our players as we take on operations.”
Digital Extremes confirmed that 30 employees were laid off
When the news of the layoffs at Digital Extremes broke, several media houses wrote to the studio asking for comments, especially regarding the number of employees laid off. However, through a LinkedIn post on the company’s page, Heidi Flynn, the Director of Human Resources confirmed that 30 employees were laid off.
“We have made the very difficult decision to cease operations of our External Projects division—which has seen us say goodbye to over 30 valued colleagues. Each one of our impacted team members played a crucial role in our journey and we want to express our heartfelt gratitude for their hard work and lasting impact they have had on our teams.”
Heidi Flynn, the Director of Human Resources
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Flynn further mentioned that the studio believes that the harsh decision was in the best interest of Warframe and Soulframe, two games from their in-house development team. Flynn also extended the company’s “deepest gratitude” to the former employees and was willing to “facilitate introductions” that will help them secure new roles in other establishments.
The public first got to know about the number of employees impacted by the layoff through Ron Davey who worked as an Art director/ manager for Digital Extremes. Sadly, Davey’s first post on LinkedIn had to be about announcing his unplanned departure from Digital Extremes, a studio he had worked with for 15 years.
“My first ever post on LinkedIn is me announcing that after 15 years at Digital Extremes, I have been let go, actually the whole External Development team (around 30) were,” he wrote on LinkedIn. “I’m proud of what our team did and what Airship Syndicate has done. I hope Wayfinder finds a new home and proves to be successful. As for Digital Extremes, I will miss working with my team and I wish DE success.”
Since September 2023, barely any week has gone by without the news of a layoff making the front burner. Over 6,000 jobs have been cut across several studios including Bungie, Epic Games, Team17, Ubisoft, CD Projekt, Riot Games, and the list goes on. Struggling Embracer Group has either laid off employees or shuttered entire studios since losing a $2 billion financing deal.
What do you think is the root cause of the harsh wave of layoffs in recent months? Share your thoughts in the comment box below.
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