Summary
- PlayStation-owned Visual Arts studio faces layoffs as several senior designers depart, highlighting the impact of support studios in popular game production.
- Key members, including former Ubisoft designer Daniel Bellemere, confirm their departure from Visual Arts Group due to layoffs.
- Layoffs at Visual Arts Group are part of a larger trend in the gaming industry, with even major companies like Epic Games and CD Projekt Red cutting jobs.
The PlayStation-owned Visual Arts studio was recently confirmed to have been hit with a wave of layoffs, seeing several senior designers departing the Sony support studio. While many fans may be more familiar with first-party studios like Naughty Dog and PlayStation Studios, support studios play a vital role in the production of many of gaming's most popular titles. Supporting developers like Studio Gogo have helped bigger studios to finish several major releases like Hogwarts Legacy and Redfall among others. Now, a reputable support studio is facing a new wave of layoffs.
PlayStation Studios' Visual Arts Group helped Sony with some of the developer's biggest release since the support studio was established in 2007. The Visual Arts Group typically works with Sony's first-party developers on major game releases, including Naughty Dog and Santa Monica Studio among others. Visual Arts Group was also majorly involved in the release of The Last of Us Part 1 last year, originally working on the project before Naughty Dog took over development. Now, PlayStation Studios' Visual Arts Group is parting ways with several employees.
News of the layoffs at Visual Arts Group would surface with several former employees for the studio announcing their departure. Former senior level designer Daniel Bellemere would announce his departure from Visual Arts Group citing a wave of layoffs at the support developer. Bellemere had previously worked at Ubisoft as a World Designer for several major projects including Assassin's Creed Valhalla and Immortals: Fenyx Rising. Other former employees like rigging artist Sean Teo and senior technical recruiter Matt Barney also confirmed their departure from Sony.
While the layoffs at Visual Arts Group affect several senior members of the gaming industry, they are far from the first in recent memory. 2023 has seen several waves of layoffs across many of the biggest developers throughout the gaming industry. Epic Games would shed a staggering 870 employees last month while CD Projekt Red would reportedly cut roughly 9% of its workforce. Even the biggest companies in gaming have not been safe from layoffs and shedding salaries with Microsoft laying off over 10,000 employees throughout the year.
Cuts at Sony's Visual Arts Group come as the studio's major gaming projects have continued to see success throughout the year. Insomniac's recently released Spider-Man 2 became the fastest-selling PlayStation Studios game in PlayStation history, moving over 2.5 million units in just 24 hours. Santa Monica Studio's God of War: Ragnarok was a finalist for "Game of the Year" at the 2022 Game Awards and The Last of Us Part 1 would receive a nomination for "Innovation in Accessibility." Sony's layoffs will leave several talented game developers looking for new opportunities with other studios.
Source: VGC