Lower than per week after Frostpunk 2 received Greatest Sim/Technique Recreation award at The Recreation Awards, developer 11 bit studios has ended growth on a sport recognized internally as Undertaking 8, and laid off a variety of workers.
Undertaking 8 had been in growth since 2018, in accordance with a assertion launched on December 17 (by way of Insider Gaming), and was supposed to be 11 bit’s first-ever sport “designed particularly for console players.” However the challenge bumped into bother, notably through the top of the Covid-19 pandemic, and the latest progress overview discovered “unresolved points and challenges that might require additional extensions of the manufacturing timeline and corresponding funds will increase to deal with.”
Adjustments within the gaming panorama since 2018 have additionally dimmed Undertaking 8’s prospects for fulfillment within the studio’s eyes: 11 bit president Przemysław Marszał mentioned the sport “was conceived beneath very totally different market situations, when narrative-driven, story-rich video games held stronger attraction.” That led to revised gross sales forecasts, presumably within the downward course, and thus administration determined to drag the plug.
The variety of workers put out of labor wasn’t specified however 11 bit mentioned 37 folks have been engaged on Undertaking 8 as of September 30, greater than half of whom might be given the chance to maneuver to different in-development tasks, together with The Alters, which is slated for 2025. The “phased nature” of the layoffs means the ultimate discount in headcount and complete prices related to cancelling Undertaking 8 will not be recognized till the discharge of 11 bits’ full-year report for 2024 early subsequent yr. An 11 bit consultant advised PC Gamer that roughly 15 individuals are being let go, and confirmed that the cuts are restricted solely to the Undertaking 8 crew.
The ugly plague of layoffs that made 2023 so terrible for therefore many sport business workers has not abated in 2024, even in its dwindling days. The scenario has grown unhealthy sufficient that even Recreation Awards host Geoff Keighley, a person not precisely recognized for his eagerness to embrace controversy, acknowledged the issue at this yr’s occasion. December alone has seen layoffs at Warner, Individuals Can Fly, Deck 9, Illfonic, Ubisoft, Torn Banner, Candy Bandits, and fairly presumably others that went unnoticed within the deluge.
