Summary
Take-Two Interactive, the publisher behind theGrand Theft Autoseries, including the upcomingGTA 6, is enacting a cut to its workforce and canceling projects. This is just the latest in the slew oflayoffs and restructurings in the gaming industryover the last couple years.
Take-Two Interactiveowns a number of massive game series, including the2Ksports games,Red Dead Redemption, GTA,BioShock, and as of a recent move,Borderlands. With hugely popular games and franchises like these in its portfolio, fans might think that the company is secure and wouldn’t need to lay off employees. However, it seems that’s not the case.
As reported byReuters, Take-Two Interactive has announced that the company is cutting about 600 employees or 5% of its workforce. The company is also selling off some of its office space, and is canceling the release of multiple projects that were in development. Take-Two believes this move will save the company $165 million annually in an effort to counter slowing revenue growth in PC and console gaming. Unfortunately, the company has not revealed what games have been axed.
This move may come as a surprise to some. Take-Two Interactive is in the process of closing a deal to buy Gearbox Entertainment for $460 million. The publisher is also approaching the release of the hotly-awaitedGrand Theft Auto 6, which is extremely likely to see massive sales and profits for the company, even before any potential microtransactions come into the picture. However, the announcement ofGearbox Entertainment’s acquisition was immediately followed by layoffsfor the developer, perhaps hinting at the direction the publisher would be moving in.
Why is Take-Two Interactive Cutting Jobs?
Take-Two Interactive is following the current trend in the gaming industry of laying off workers in an effort to reduce spending and increase profits. One of the alleged reasons for this kind of mass layoff is that game companies hired more workers during the pandemic due to an uptick in gaming from people being cooped up at home. However, now that most employees have returned to the office and may have less time to game, there’s a supposed excess of game industry employees. Combined with lowered sale expectations, and many developers andgame publishers are reducing the size of their workforceto compensate.
Take-Two Interactive is far from alone in this move, as massive game companies like Sony, Microsoft, and as well as a number of individual developers have made major cuts to their teams. However, not everyone is in agreement with the alleged reason behind it. The director ofBaldur’s Gate 3at Larian Studios has claimed that these workforce cuts are primarily due togreed in the gaming industry. No matter the cause, it’s an unfortunate thing for the developers who work so hard to bring games to life.
Grand Theft Auto 6
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