Enad International 7 has introduced that 38 staff at its Piranha Video games studio will likely be laid off after the latest recreation in its Mechwarrior sequence, Mechwarrior 5: Clans, “carried out under expectations.” Individually, the corporate additionally introduced that Toadman, whose most up-to-date launch is the 2024 shooter EvilVEvil, is being closed solely.
“The workforce at Piranha really delivered a high-quality recreation that exceeded each inside in addition to exterior expectations when it comes to high quality, story and gameplay,” Enad International 7 CEO Ji Ham mentioned. “Regardless of the outstanding work by the workforce at Piranha, the sport failed to achieve new audiences and increase its core viewers as anticipated and due to this fact has not met the mandatory gross sales targets, which has compelled us to undertake obligatory actions.”
We favored Clans fairly a bit when it dropped final 12 months, saying it “delivers a powerful story of struggling younger warriors alongside the all time model of its iconic, lumbering mech fight” in our 82% evaluate. Participant numbers on Steam weren’t nice, although, reaching an all-time peak concurrent participant rely of simply 5,600, based on SteamDB—not rather more than the height put up by the 10-year-old Mechwarrior On-line.
The layoffs imply Piranha will be capable of proceed working with “sound profitability” whereas nonetheless producing new content material for Mechwarrior 5: Clans, Enad International 7 mentioned, and is not sound profitability and producing new content material what made us fall in love with video games within the first place?
For comparable causes, however with out point out of any particular failure, Toadman will likely be closed after “a number of initiatives to show the subsidiary worthwhile” apparently failed to perform their aim. EG7 mentioned the shutdown “stems straight from the continued trade challenges and the studio’s incapacity to safe new Work-for-Rent (WFH) contracts at a obligatory tempo,” and can see 69 staff and subcontractors put out of labor, though 42 will proceed to work on the studio’s presently contracted initiatives till they’re accomplished.
It positive did not assist that Toadman’s 2024 shooter EvilVevil landed with a whole thud. We strongly advisable towards enjoying it for any motive, and for as soon as individuals listened: Its all-time peak concurrent participant rely on Steam is simply 37, and SteamDB says there are actually zero individuals enjoying it proper now.
And so it goes. 2023 was a horrible 12 months for layoffs within the videogame trade, 2024 was even worse, and 2025 positive is not off to an incredible begin: Earlier this week Splash Injury mentioned layoffs are seemingly following the cancellation of Transformers: Reactivate, and Jar of Sparks, a studio headed by former Halo Infinite design head Jerry Hook, halted work on its unreleased recreation and successfully closed its doorways after mother or father firm NetEase ended funding for the undertaking.
