Crytek Restructures Workforce and Shifts Focus to FPS Hunt: Showdown, Pausing Development on Crysis 4
By Crytek is executing layoffs and has confirmed that Crysis 4 has been put “on hold.”
The developers well-known for creating the original Far Cry, Crysis, Ryse: Son of Rome, Hunt: Showdown, and the game development engine CryEngine shared this information in a social media update earlier today, announcing that approximately 60 employees involved in game development and supporting services would be laid off.
“Like many of our industry peers, we are not immune to the intricate, challenging market conditions that have impacted our sector in recent years,” the post states. “It genuinely saddens us to announce that we must let go of about 15% of our workforce of around 400 employees.” Crytek subsequently indicated that it has been “attempting to transition developers to Hunt: Showdown 1896,” its popular PvPvE extraction shooter, after halting development on the next Crysis installment last year.
“While Hunt: Showdown 1896 continues to develop, Crytek cannot maintain the status quo and ensure financial viability. Despite ongoing measures to cut costs and reduce operational expenses, we have concluded that layoffs are necessary to progress. Crytek will provide those affected with severance packages and career support services.”
Crytek is now fully focused on enhancing Hunt: Showdown “with significant content,” while continuing to support CryEngine. There are no other games publicly scheduled for release besides the Crysis 4, which remains indefinitely on hold. This news is particularly concerning given that the sci-fi shooter Crysis was the franchise that first brought Crytek into the limelight and showcased the impressive capabilities of CryEngine in creating visually stunning games.
Layoffs in the gaming industry have been especially severe this past year, with nearly every major publisher and developer experiencing workforce reductions. In just the last couple of weeks, EA further reduced personnel at BioWare, the Smite 2 studio bid farewell to more employees, and Killer Instinct reboot developers Iron Galaxy let go of 66 employees as a “last resort.”
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