Outriders developer People Can Fly has announced its second round of layoffs in less than a year, this time affecting “more than 120” people. The move accompanies the cancellation or downsizing of several projects, with the studio blaming “external market pressures”.
In a statement announcing its latest layoffs, People Can Fly CEO Sebastian Wojciechowski wrote, “Today, we made a very difficult decision to reduce our self-publishing strategy by suspending Project Victoria, scaling down our team on Project Bifrost and restructuring some of our supporting teams at People Can Fly.”
“We are deeply saddened by the fact that this situation means suspending or parting ways with more that 120 talented Aviators,” Wojciechowski continued, “colleagues who we enjoyed having as part of our team… This action became necessary as external market pressures persisted beyond our forecasts. The video game market is still evolving, and we have to adjust with where things are today. We are doubling 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.” Wojciechowski added the studio is providing “resources and assistance” to those impacted by the job cuts, and remains “equally committed to caring for those staying, who are managing the challenges of losing coworkers and friends.”
People Can Fly’s latest round of layoffs follows the studio’s decision to cut “over 30” jobs in January this year. Those layoffs followed reported changes to the budget and scope of Project Gemini – a collaboration with Square Enix that the studio had previously admitted was facing challenges – and Take-Two’s decision to pull out of publishing People Can Fly’s Project Dagger in September last year. Alongside several other unnannouced games, the studio continues work on the Microsoft-funded Project Maverick, based on one of the latter’s IP.
Today’s news continues a devastating 2024 for the games industry, with more than 14,600 industry employees believed to have lost their jobs since the start of the year – and that’s in addition to the 10,500 workers laid off in 2023. So why are these layoffs occurring? GamesIndustry.biz’s Chris Dring shared his thoughts earlier this year.