Summary
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 Gogohave helped bigger studios to finish several major releases likeHogwarts LegacyandRedfallamong 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 ofThe Last of Us Part 1last year, originally working on the project before Naughty Dog took over development. Now, PlayStation Studios' Visual Arts Group is parting ways with several employees.
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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 severalmajor projects includingAssassin’s Creed ValhallaandImmortals: 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 employeeslast 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 releasedSpider-Man 2became the fastest-selling PlayStation Studios gamein PlayStation history, moving over 2.5 million units in just 24 hours. Santa Monica Studio’sGod of War: Ragnarokwas a finalist for “Game of the Year” at the 2022 Game Awards andThe Last of Us Part 1would receive a nomination for “Innovation in Accessibility.” Sony’s layoffs will leave several talented game developers looking for new opportunities with other studios.
