May 20, 2011 4:42 PM
Zipper Layoffs
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Here’s a fine bonus for the developers at Zipper Interactive, 33 of them have been laid off according to sources. Sony, who has owned the studio for almost five years, told Kotaku that it’s a standard practice to lay off people once the latest titles are launched.
What it sounds like is that there won’t be massive support for MAG and SOCOM, the games which Zipper Interactive has been responsible for.
There is some debate as to whether or not this is standard practice. Some studios say they do not do things this way and that they’ve got standard contracts while others hire staff on for a project, in this case the development of a specific title, and when that project is done, it’s entirely possible they might be let go.
Either way, we hope Zipper Interactive will continue on with operations as usual and continue to support their most recent titles. It certainly doesn’t appear that they have enough staff now to be doing too much development on new titles. Whether this is a cost-cutting measure for Sony, who is obviously going to post a big loss this quarter, or if it is the normal lifecycle of the studio remains to be confirmed.
