EA lays off 5% of its global workforce | The Midweek Memo #008

Bonjour 👋

Brace yourself. It's another negative one. 😔

That’s largely because EA confirmed last week that it would lay off 5% of its workforce as part of its ongoing efforts to streamline operations, affecting hundreds of people. This is the fourth round of layoffs for the publisher and its studios in the last year.

Additionally, Deck Nine Games, the developer of Life is Strange, has also announced layoffs affecting 20% of its workforce, and some former employees have suggested that the studio's compensation offer was wholely inadequate.

Away from the seemingly neverending cycle of layoffs, Nintendo has filed a lawsuit against Switch emulator Yuzu, which has now been settled out of court for $2.4 million. Yuzu and its 3DS equivalent Citra have also being shut down.

Last but not least, after being caught up in Microsoft's layoffs earlier this year, Toys for Bob has announced that it will leave Activision and become a fully independent developer.

With all of that being said, let’s get the ball rolling with some of the best gaming jobs posted this week!

Hot Jobs 🔥

There’s a solid mix of on-site and remote roles for all experience levels here:

[1] Lead Gameplay Designer, Ready or Not
🏢 VOID 🌎 Remote Europe/North America 📄 Full Time 🎚️ 5+ years exp

[2] Asset Coordinator
🏢 Liquid Development 🇺🇸 Remote USA 📄 Full Time 🎚️ 0+ years exp

[3] Junior Unity C# Programmer - Blackmill Games
🏢 Focus Home Interactive 🌎 Remote Anywhere 📄 Full Time 🎚️ 1+ year exp

[4] Thai Game Tester
🏢 PTW 🇬🇧 Remote UK 📄 Full Time 🎚️ 0+ years exp

[5] Creative Development Intern
🏢 PlayStation ​🇺🇸 Culver City, CA 📄 Internship 🎚️ 0+ years exp

[6] Producer, Marketing
🏢 Zynga 🇺🇸 Remote USA 📄 Full Time 🎚️ 1+ year exp

[7] Monetization Designer Expert, Growth IQ
🏢 Yodo1 🌎 Remote Anywhere 📄 Full Time 🎚️ 2+ years exp

[8] Unreal Assembly Tech [Animation Department]
🏢 The Third Floor 🇨🇦 British Columbia, CA 📄 Full Time 🎚️ 0+ years exp

[9] People Operations Coordinator (short-term)
🏢 Niantic 🇺🇸 Bellevue, WA 📄 Contract 🎚️ 0+ years exp

[10] Marketing Manager
🏢 Auroch Digital 🇬🇧 Remote UK 📄 Contract 🎚️ 2+ years exp

All-in-all, we've posted 180+ new opportunities since our last newsletter. Best of luck to everyone on the hunt for a new home! 🤞🤞

Big News 📰

😞 EA lays off 5% of its workforce, closes Battlefield campaign studio

• EA has announced that it will lay off 5% of its global workforce— approximately 670 employees—as part of its ongoing effort to "optimize its global real estate footprint to best support its business." The cuts are expected to be completed at the beginning of the next quarter.
  

• CEO Andrew Wilson stated that with the changes, EA would shift away from "future licensed IP" and toward "owned IP, sports, and massive online communities."
  

• The publisher has also shut down Ridgeline Games, a Seattle-based studio founded in 2021 to work on a narrative-focused Battlefield project. Criterion Games has taken over its development, with some of the affected employees joining fellow Battlefield studio Ripple Effect.

Other News 🗞️

The layoffs did not only affect EA's direct employees, as the publisher also announced that Respawn's Star Wars FPS has been canceled so that the studio can focus on Apex Legends and the next title in the Jedi series.

Deck Nine, the Life is Strange: True Colors developer, has also let folks go this week, reducing its headcount by 20% due to "worsening market conditions."

Switch emulator Yuzu has been discontinued after Nintendo sued its creators last week. The two parties have now reached an out-of-court settlement for $2.4 million, with the condition that Yuzu and 3DS emulator Citra be shut down.

Finally—in a rare bit of good news—Toys for Bob, the developer of Skylanders and Crash Bandicoot 4, has announced that it will go independent after nearly two decades with Activision.

🔫 Respawn's Star Wars FPS has been canceled

😓 Life is Strange: True Colors studio Deck Nine announces layoffs

🧑‍⚖️ Switch emulator Yuzu shuts down after settling Nintendo lawsuit for $2.4 million

💪 Crash and Skylanders studio Toys for Bob is becoming independent

Indielab Games UK Accelerator 2024 🚀

Indielab Games has officially opened applications for its 2024 Accelerator program, which will provide small to medium-sized studios in the UK with tools and information to help them grow and secure publishing deals.

Applications close on April 9, and companies that apply by March 8 will receive a discounted fee of £2,500. More information about the program is available on its website.

Getting Social 📲

Here’s a peek at two of our top LinkedIn posts from the last seven days:

We're back with yet another entry-level jobs roundup, and there are some bangers this time around!

Roblox has opened up several paid internship opportunities for the summer, while Keywords Studios, EA, and PTW are currently offering remote positions throughout Europe. 💪

As always, if nothing on our list piques your interest, many more opportunities are available on our platform.

If you miss the days of CRT TVs, light gun games, and the iconic PS1 boot-up sound, EmuVR could be the answer.

We were blown away by nostalgia this week when we saw Time Crisis booted up inside the customizable VR bedroom, complete with rubbing the smudge off the back of the disc and turning off the light to get into the zone.

You can even play multiplayer or watch old-school cartoons with your friends by inviting them into your virtual room! 🤯

EmuVR supports more than 70 retro consoles and is available on numerous PC VR platforms. Find out more about the free project on its official website.

Adieu ✌️

It's always so disheartening to have to write about industry layoffs, but there doesn't appear to be any signs of them slowing down just yet in 2024. 😔

We hope you still managed to enjoy this week's newsletter, though, and with a bit of luck we'll be able to share a few more positive news items in the next one!

Best wishes from all of us here,

Danny and the gang at Hitmarker 🧡