505 Games, a subsidiary of Digital Bros., has announced additional changes in its restructuring efforts. After the previously announced 30% reduction in workforce in November 2023, the company is now shutting down its offices in Germany, Spain, and France.
This change, majorly affecting 505 Games will hit a lot of departments (According to a report from GamesReactor). Marketing, communication, and PR roles are affected as part of a larger trend of publishers consolidating their local presence. The number of employees impacted has not been disclosed but is estimated to be less than 10, which is fewer than the layoffs last year.
The recent office closures have led to uncertainty about the future of various projects in progress. Although the restructuring mainly focuses on non-development positions, its potential impact on titles such as Assetto Corsa 2 and Project Iron remains unclear. Assetto Corsa 2 was scheduled for release in 2024, while Project Iron, a dark fantasy game developed by MercurySteam, wasn’t expected until late 2024 or early 2025.
Remedy Entertainment recently regained the rights to the Control franchise from 505 Games. While it seemed strange for 505 Games to sell off such a valuable IP, that may have been part of how they could quickly earn money. Unfortunately, this means that 505 Games will no longer be able to earn profit from the Control series.
Digital Bros. said they made changes because people like well-known games more than new ones. They want to focus on successful games and change their organization to stay competitive. It’s hard to say if the sale of Control was a part of that or just an easy way to earn some revenue to save jobs, but it’s clear that the end of this unpleasantness is not yet near.
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