People Can Fly is ‘suspending or laying off’ 120 employees
People Can Fly announces job cuts and plans to scale back its self-publishing strategy
People Can Fly has announced plans to lay off a significant number of employees due to “external market pressures”.
In a statement released on Tuesday, CEO Sebastian Wojciechowski said the Bulletstorm studio was “suspending or parting ways with more than 120 talented Aviators”.
The company said it’s further reducing its self-publishing plans by suspending Project Victoria, scaling down its team on Project Bifrost, and restructuring some of its supporting teams.
“This action became necessary as external market pressures persisted beyond our forecasts,” Wojciechowski said. “The video game market is still evolving, and we have to adjust with where things are today.
“We are redoubling our efforts with new work for hire engagements and focusing on the development of a single independent game.
“We believe in our teams, games and their potential, and we remain extremely committed to continuing that journey, but we need to tailor our plans to our financial capacity.
“We are deeply grateful for the contributions of every team member impacted by this turn of events; their talent and dedication have helped shape our company and our games. These changes are deeply felt by all of us.”
In April, People Can Fly announced that it had cancelled a co-op action RPG codenamed Project Dagger after several years of development.
The company behind Painkiller, Bulletstorm, Gears of War: Judgment and Outriders had been planning to self-publish Project Dagger after it was dropped by original publisher Take-Two Interactive in 2022.
And in January, People Can Fly reportedly laid off over 30 developers working on an unannounced Square Enix game.
“We recognize this is a profoundly challenging time for our team members, as we say goodbye to valued colleagues who have contributed so much,” today’s statement from Wojciechowski continued.
“We are focused on supporting those impacted during this transition providing them with resources and assistance to navigate this change, and are equally committed to caring for those staying, who are managing the challenges of losing coworkers and friends.
Further reading
People Can Fly has cancelled co-op action RPG Project Dagger
“Our priority is to approach this moment with compassion and to ensure our team feels supported as we work together to build a stronger future. In this hard moment our dedication to excellence and creativity remains as strong as ever.
“For everyone who loves what we create – we will not give up on our dreams.”
Deck Nine, the studio behind recent Life is Strange games and The Expanse: A Telltale Series, also said today that it’s laying off an unspecified number of its staff.
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