Swedish video game holding company Thunderful Group is to implement a “restructuring programme”, which will see around a fifth of its workforce laid off.
Thunderful, which owns multiple development studios and publishers including Coatsink and Somerville developer Jumpship, said this programme aims to “strengthen the Group’s long-term competitive position” by lowering costs and “increasing focus on areas with the best future growth and profitability prospects”.
This will include staff reductions of approximately 20 percent, as well as the “divestment of non-strategic assets”.
The company cited over-investing in recent years as the reason for its need to restructure. “These investments have proven unsustainable given the current industry climate, which has resulted in the Group being particularly affected by challenging market conditions,” it wrote earlier today.
“The new management team and the board of directors have identified the need to restructure the Group and focus its efforts on the strategic assets with the best long-term prospects.”
In a statement, the company’s CEO Martin Walfisz said there was “no alternative other than to reduce costs and focus the business on areas with the best future growth and profitability prospects”. He added it had been “difficult” to make these decisions, and he will be sad to say goodbye to many of his colleagues.
“Nevertheless, I am convinced that this is a necessary direction for Thunderful and that these changes will make the company a stronger player in the market,” he closed.
News of Thunderful’s restructuring programme is, sadly, just the most recent in a long line of layoffs and studio closures over the last 12 months. Our Bertie covered the impact last year in particular had on the industry in his feature, You can’t talk about 2023 in games without talking about layoffs.
Meanwhile, just this week, a “sizable” portion of the Gearbox-owned studio Lost Boys Interactive was laid off.
