Last month, several developers working at Sharkmob London posted on social media that they had been impacted by layoffs. It appears November 1, 2024, was their last official working day. Tencent has now confirmed the news through a statement available at PocketGamer.biz.
“In line with many studios, Sharkmob has been impacted by the difficult conditions across the video gaming market,” Tencent said in a statement. “As a result, regrettably, Sharkmob has had to make a reduction in headcount in its London office. Tencent remains committed to Sharkmob and the launch of its upcoming game, Exoborne.”
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The reduction of headcount came after the cancelation of an unannounced title. Last month, the London office entered a consultation period to assess the number of layoffs that was needed. Sharkmob said at that time that it would “try and minimize this impact”.
“As you know, our industry is facing challenges, meaning we must adapt to focus on the right opportunities as a business,” the studio said following the initial news that layoffs were planned.
“Our team in London has been working on an unannounced game for some time and it is with regret that we now have to announce that this project has been cancelled. The decision to cancel the game, unfortunately, means there will be a reduction in the number of people we can support in the London studio. This is an incredibly difficult time, and our focus is to provide the support and guidance to those potentially impacted.”
Sharkmob is a game development company founded in 2017. It has studios located in Malmo (Sweden) and London (UK) with its headquarters in the former. Their first game was Bloodhunt, a battle royale set in the Vampire: The Masquerade universe. The game was released on April 27, 2022.
Interestingly, we cited a job advert posted by Sharkmob a day ago that showed they were hiring a game Quality Analyst—after firing one. The role is likely related to their upcoming game, Exoborne.
Ex Sharkmob devs enjoy sendoff party amidst layoff
Most layoff announcements are usually unceremonious with the developers going their separate ways. The case was different at Sharkmob where the developers impacted by the layoff came together for one last party. Some of the developers have spoken about the sendoff party.
“Yesterday was the last official day at Sharkmob and boy did we have a hell of a send off,” wrote senior QA Daniel Williams. “Truly a special office full of very talented people, thank you for everything you taught me and will miss you all!”
Toby Hynes who was laid off from his position as lead character artist before moving to Spliced Inc. where he is now the associate character art director was also invited to the sendoff party.
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“I was very kindly invited back to the closing down party for Sharkmob London last night. All there to raise a glass to a great team and a great project,” Hynes wrote. “Hoping everyone there quickly finds a new job their talent deserves.”
“Friday was the last day for the majority of the Sharkmob London crew,” wrote Eddie Stubbington. “We had an amazing crew and project, a real shame that it didn’t continue, it was a dream combo for me in terms of project, team and studio location. Getting together with everyone for a final time on Friday, including some old faces felt like a great send-off.”
The video game industry continues to shed employees. Last year, over 10,000 jobs were lost in the industry. This year, that number has already surpassed 15,000. The number of employees impacted by the recent development at Sharkmob remains unknown.
