What you need to know
- Lost Boys Interactive is a studio that's supported the development of games such as Tiny Tina's Wonderlands.
- Acquired by Embracer Group-owned Gearbox Software in 2022, Lost Boys Interactive employed around 400 people.
- Embracer Group has cut a number of jobs at the studio, with a large number employees laid off.
- This followed numerous other cuts made by Embracer Group over the last several months, including closing multiple studios.
We haven't even gone two weeks into 2024, but the layoffs aren't stopping.
Embracer Group is cutting even more people from its studios, with Lost Boys Interactive under Gearbox Software the latest to be hit. Multiple employees shared the news that they had been laid off on Friday via LinkedIn.
Lost Boys Interactive is a support studio that's contributed to some of the best Xbox games of the last several years, such as Tiny Tina's Wonderlands. The studio was acquired by Gearbox Software back in 2022, with the team growing from over 220 to over 350 developers. It's not clear at the moment I'm writing this exactly how many employees have been affected, but many of the staff that have been laid off describe it as "sizeable," with cuts across design, QA, production, and more.
Tiny Tina's Wonderlands "exceeded expectations" according to Take-Two Interactive, parent company of publisher 2K Games that has published Gearbox Software titles like Borderlands 3 and Tiny Tina's Wonderlands.
Why is Embracer Group cutting more jobs?
Huge layoffs have been everywhere across the gaming industry in the past year, but holding company Embracer Group's cuts have been especially brutal, with the company closing studios like Saints Row developer Volition and laying off members of studios like Crystal Dynamics.
Embracer Group is slashing costs everywhere to save money, reportedly largely due to the fallout of a failed deal where the company attempted to gain $2 billion in funding from Savvy Games Group, an investment group backed by the Saudi Arabian government. Embracer Group is also reportedly exploring the sale of Gearbox Entertainment.
Analysis: I'm sick of Embracer Group
Embracer is hardly alone in layoffs, but the self-inflicted nature of these cuts makes them extra infuriating to watch unfold. Every time I start to think that the bleeding is slowing down or stopping, the wounds are opened up again.
My best wishes to the affected employees, and I hope they can all find jobs again relatively soon. I truly hope no one else under Embracer Group is being laid off in the weeks and months ahead.
