Take Two Interactivethe publisher behind Rockstar Games, 2K, Private Division and recently Gearbox, has announced that it intends fire 600 peopleabout the 5% of its total workforce.
The company added that, given the staff cuts, they will also come some projects currently underway have been eliminated. He did not specify which ones, but these are games not yet revealed to the general public. According to the publisher, the maneuver will be completed by the end of 2024 and will guarantee a cost reduction of 165 million dollars per year.
Layoffs continue within the industry
Take-Two’s intention to reduce costs this year had already been suggested by CEO Strauss Zelnick. In February, a cost reduction program was drawn up, which aimed to save 50 million dollars, much less than the results actually achieved. It is not excluded that the company has revised these plans in recent weeks, after acquiring Gearbox from Embracer Group for 460 million dollars. Among other things, this studio was also forced to make staff cuts after the merger.
Unfortunately we are in a historical moment where even the dismissal of 600 people is seen as something ordinary within the sector. Moreover, in the last two years we have seen an impressive number of staff cuts: since the beginning of 2024 alone, over 8,000 workers have been laid off according to the Game Industry Layoffs portal, in addition to the approximately 10,000 last year. For example, just in the last few weeks there have also been staff cuts within Relic Entertainment, Ubisoft and, according to an indiscretion, also for the Apex Legends QA Team.
