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Layoffs hit Raven

by on27 August 2009

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Studio hit with 30/35 jobs lost so far

Raven, the studio responsible most recently for Wolfenstein which was just released, and Singularity which will be released next year, has been hit with about 30 to 35 layoffs today according to our sources, but we continue to hear whispers that the number could rise to as high as almost 60 before all of the layoffs are completed.

The Activision subsidiary studio is said to be undergoing these layoffs to better reflect the upcoming slate of titles in development. The developer, based in Wisconsin, is said to have had a staff of about 180 before any of the layoffs hit; and if the layoff numbers reach as high as 60 as some of our sources are whispering, this could potentially put the future of the studio in jeopardy.

While we hear that those being affected will get severance packages, it still is puzzling as to why Activision is making this move with a developer such as Raven who has such a successful track record. We suspect, based on discussions with our sources that internally Raven will be moving from three development teams to just two, so the layoff numbers could potentially stay at about 60; which does seem to add up.

We suspect that we will hear more specifics over the next couple of days. Still, we have to wonder if a title is being dropped and Activision currently sees no need for a third development team.  If this is the case, what title is being dropped? While we don’t have any official word, what we can tell is that some of sources claim that it has to do with the poor sales of the last couple of titles and the anticipated slow sales of Wolfenstein.

Last modified on 27 August 2009
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