Never good news when people lose their jobs, but it's just the unfortunate reality for those who work in Game Development. Activision has decided to lay off roughly 50 employees from Guitar Hero Live developer Freestyle Games, a company that is home to only around 100 employees.
Back in February, Activision noted a "lower than expected performance" for Guitar Hero Live when it launched around the same time Rock Band 4 did. When a publisher makes that remark, you know changes are bound to come.
Here is the official statement:
Activision and FreeStyle Games leadership have been considering a range of future options for the studio, and have been consulting with staff to explore all alternatives. The collective team have now reached the end of a consultation exercise and the decision has been made to restructure FreeStyleGames to better align the studio resources with future business needs. We are working with the studio teams to explore options to rebalance staff within Activision Blizzard and its related organisations.The UK remains a key market for Activision Blizzard and FreeStyleGames continues to be a great partner. We thank all of the team for their continued passion, creativity and commitment.
This isn't the first time Activision has been willing to lay off employees due to subpar performance but the publishing giant has reiterated that Freestyle Games will remin open. Good luck to those who lost their jobs.
