Earlier this week, we reported on the layoffs that had hit the Marvel Rivals team at NetEase. In one sweep, an entire department in North America was laid off, despite the rampant and ongoing success of Marvel Rivals.
Now, a fresh report published by Game File’s Stephen Totilo has expanded on NetEase’s current situation. The gaming titan has been in a sticky spot of late, and studios it has opened or invested in have started to experience layoffs and closures, such as Liquid Swords, which this week also announced redundancies.
Per Totilo’s report, the devastation is yet to unfold in full, and ‘more than a dozen studios’ could be facing closure.
‘Constant Review and Evaluation’
In Game File’s most recent report, it was stressed that NetEase’s cuts aren’t ending with Liquid Swords and the Marvel Rivals team.
It was stressed by Stephen Totilo:
NetEase is actively shopping around more of its non-Chinese studios—many of the very same ones it announced over the last three years—two people familiar with the company’s efforts tell Game File. Neither individual was authorized to speak about NetEase’s plans publicly.
Those sources have claimed that NetEase wants to divest ‘overseas teams’, an action that could lead to the closure of more than a dozen game studios around the world. The situation would be exacerbated if these studios can’t secure funding once ‘dropped’ by NetEase.
As you can imagine, NetEase neglected to comment on these insider reports, but it was mentioned that the company and its studios are ‘in constant review and evaluation, and NetEase will determine changes needed to be made.’
In a one-year window, Embracer Group laid off more than 4,500 employees and brought about the closure of 80 projects, as well as shutting down some prolific studios. This NetEase situation could mirror that to some extent.
The Chinese company is the fifth largest game firm by revenue, sitting just behind Nintendo and a step ahead of Electronic Arts. It collectively employs around 30,000 people, which represents a concerning amount of ‘fodder’.
I’m most concerned about Rebel Wolves, which NetEase invested in back in 2022. Recently, the Polish studio revealed Blood of Dawnwalker, an intriguing title pieced together by former Witcher developers. That could be one of the studios impacted by these changes.
For now, everything remains up in the air.
For more GPlayr coverage, check out the news that fresh references have been found for the new Xbox controller