Rocksteady Studios has been impacted by a major wave of layoffs, as a result of the underperformance of Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League. Speaking to Eurogamer, multiple staff confirmed a significant company “restructure” has taken place, with the company’s QA department most impacted.
According to these staff, the QA department has shrunk from 33 team members to just 15, in a move that has been described as detrimental to future game development. Laid off staff believe this reduction will cause remaining QA workers to shoulder far more work, and senior management has reportedly stated the move will lead to lower quality products overall.
Some of the team members laid off reportedly had “specialised knowledge” that Rocksteady will now lack. That includes folks outside the QA department, who have also reportedly been subject to this mass layoff. Most of the staff who have been laid off are described as juniors, but several company veterans who’ve been there for more than five years have also reportedly been laid off.
Sources speaking to Eurogamer are concerned about what this will mean for the company going forward, as it picks up the pieces left by Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League.
Read: Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League labelled ‘disappointing’ by WBD
As previously reported, the release of this game was a major disappointment for Rocksteady Studios and its parent company, Warner Bros. Discovery. It reportedly contributed to a USD $200 million revenue loss for WBD, dragging down the wider Warner Bros. Discovery Studios division.
It was previously considered a “key video game release” by the company, but live service game fatigue and poor critical reception on launch contributed to low overall sales, and a lack of mainstream interest. The reality is that Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League arrived much too late to ride the wave of live service game popularity, and did little to provide a compelling reason for players to invest their time.
When games chase trends, and then take several years in development, it becomes incredibly difficult for them to stay relevant. In the modern era, video game tastes change incredibly rapidly, and one genre or style of gameplay can easily by supplanted by the next, while games are in the development process. It becomes much harder for larger companies and projects to pivot.
Unfortunately, it appears the decisions surrounding Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League have now taken a human toll, as laid off staff are now out of work, in one of the most difficult eras for the video games industry. Our thoughts are with those impacted by the layoffs at Rocksteady Studios.
