Game news With this company sold and 240 jobs eliminated, Sega is experiencing one of the worst periods of its existence
The year 2023 has been extremely complicated for people working in the video game industry, and the move to 2024 hasn’t helped matters. Some observers expect a lull with the end of the fiscal year but, just before, it was SEGA which decided to downsize.
SEGA decides to reduce its workforce in Europe: Creative Assembly hard hit
Although he hasn’t been a builder for a long time now, SEGA remains a very active publisher. From Like A Dragon to Persona via Football Manager and Sonic or Unicorn Overlord, players have had plenty to do in recent months. However, the atmosphere is not festive at the publisher, and particularly within the Western branches. We had proof of this very recently with an announcement concerning the British division of the publisher.
After cutting 250 positions in its European subsidiaries in September, the publisher announced that 240 additional positions would disappear. The vast majority of layoffs concern Creative Assembly (Total War, Alien Isolation), which had already been affected after the cancellation of Hyenas, as well as Sega Europe. Sega Hardlight (Sonic Dreamteam) has also been targeted by some job cuts, but Sports Interactive and Two Points Studios seem calm for the moment. In total, the various restructurings resulted in the dismissal of 620 people in one year.
I would like to sincerely apologize for the concern and understandable distress that this news will cause, particularly to those directly affected. These decisions were incredibly difficult to make and followed careful review and deliberation with leadership teams across the company. (…). We need to streamline, focus on what we know how to do and best position ourselves for the future. To do this, we must respond to the changing economic landscape and the challenges we face in how we develop our products and bring them to market, said Jurgen Post, President of SEGA Western Studios.
Relic Entertainment is no longer a SEGA studio
At the same time, and a bit like what we are witnessing with Embracer in recent weeks, a SEGA studio has just regained its independence. On March 28, studio managers Relic Entertainment announced that the company was leaving SEGA and becoming independent with the help of an external investor called Emona Capital. The complex situation of the studio perhaps explains this choice. The latter had laid off 121 people last yearthe latest productions having clearly not achieved their objectives.
We have an important announcement to make to our players and fans. With an external investor, Relic Entertainment will become an independent development studio. This is a big change for us, but one thing doesn’t change: we want to create incredible experiences for our players (…). We want to thank SEGA, whose support over the years and their help during this transition has been instrumental in our success. We may be outside the SEGA business, but we remain friends and colleagues.
If you are a player of Company of Heroes 3, however, rest assured, because this new independence does not put an end to the follow-up of the game. The developers currently preparing version 1.6, which is expected to be released later this month. It will include new content as well as various features requested by the community. Obviously, Jurgen Post wished Relic Entertainment all the best in this new adventure.