Tragedy: Significant Layoffs in Call of Duty
In a surprising turn of events, the popular video game franchise, Call of Duty, has experienced a significant reduction in its workforce. Despite the financial success of the series, it seems that even employees working on the most profitable projects are not immune to corporate downsizing.
Recently, Microsoft announced a nearly 9% reduction in its gaming division, resulting in the layoff of nearly 2,000 employees from companies such as Activision Blizzard, ZeniMax, and Xbox. Among those affected were individuals working on Call of Duty, one of the industry’s biggest and most lucrative brands. This serves as a stark reminder that no one, not even those involved in such a profitable enterprise, is safe when corporations make “difficult decisions” regarding workforce reduction.
Social media platforms like LinkedIn and Twitter have been flooded with messages from former Call of Duty developers bidding farewell to their jobs. Austin O’Brien, the community manager at Raven Software, announced his departure after three years of working on Warzone. Ethan Pflugh, an environmental artist at Sledgehammer Games, also lost his job after three years with the studio. Two representatives from Sledgehammer Games, system designer Brad Dallaire and quality assurance manager, also found themselves unemployed. Reportedly, the new IT department at Infinity Ward has been reduced to just one person. Even employees at High Moon Studios, a subsidiary of Activision that assisted with Call of Duty and Destiny, were not spared from these layoffs. It truly is a tragedy.
While exact figures regarding the scale of these layoffs are difficult to ascertain, reports suggest that they are extensive. An internal memo obtained by IGN, written by Xbox head Phil Spencer, mentioned the “painful decision” to lay off approximately 1,900 individuals from a workforce of 22,000. However, the memo also ensured that those affected would receive compensation as per local regulations and emphasized the company’s commitment to “creating more games for a larger number of players worldwide.” The ABK Workers Alliance, a group of organized employees at Activision Blizzard King, expressed their dissatisfaction with the situation and pledged to “continue working together to support and protect our current and former colleagues.”
The sudden loss of jobs for these individuals is undoubtedly heart-wrenching. It is only the beginning of the year, and already around 6,000 people have been affected. One would like to believe in the saying, “It must get worse before it gets better,” but when even developers of Call of Duty are uncertain about their job security, it is difficult to envision an immediate improvement.
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