Longtime English studio Splash Damage is facing an uncertain future as it begins a consultation process that will affect all staff and likely lead to layoffs.
On November 26, Splash Damage publicly announced online that the studio was entering a “studio-wide consultation process” that would involve all employees across all roles and disciplines. This follows the London-based studio being acquired in September by a private equity investor after being sold by its previous owner, Chinese conglomerate Tencent.
“This was a difficult step for us to take,” said Splash Damage via a message shared on LinkedIn. “But we believe it is necessary so Splash Damage can remain agile and adaptable in what has been a very challenging market. We know this kind of change is emotionally tough, and we will do what we can to guide our people through this process with honesty and care. We’re committed to exploring every option to retain talent and making sure those affected have meaningful support throughout.”
Splash Damage already suffered layoffs earlier this year after the Transformers game it was working on was canceled. The last game the studio shipped was 2020’s Outcasters for Google’s now-defunct Stadia game streaming service. Before that, the studio, which was formed in 2001, had developed various popular multiplayer games, including Wolfenstein: Enemy Territory, Brink, and helped Xbox as a support studio on Halo and Gears of War titles. It also developed Gears of War Tactics.
It is the latest round of bad news for the video game industry as developers continue to be laid off and studios closed as publishers tighten their belts and begin investing more into AI generation tools.
