Joystiq is reporting that "a number of positions" at Square Enix's LA office have been eliminated. Square-Enix hasn't given a reason for the layoffs, but it's likely related to the recent earnings failure coupled with the removal of Square-Enix president Yoichi Wada. The company gave Joystiq the following statement:
"We can confirm that Square Enix's Los Angeles office has eliminated a number of positions as part of the corporate restructuring announced last week. This is an unfortunate situation and we are offering assistance and severance packages to any employees affected by this, we want to thank them for their hard work and sincerely wish them well in the future."
Likewise, "Deadpool" developer High Moon also announced their own company had let go a total of 40 employees. High Moon's parent company Activision Blizzard gave their statement to IGN:
"Activision Publishing consistently works to align its costs with its revenues – this is an ongoing process. With the completion of development on Deadpool, we are taking a reduction in staff at High Moon Studios to better align our development talent against our slate. Approximately, 40 full-time employees will be impacted globally. We are offering those employees who are impacted outplacement counseling services."
Finish a game, get the axe. How lovely. High Moon was a bit more encouraging to the lost staffers, telling other developers they would be lucky to have their talents. High Moon put out a Tweet saying, "Thank you our beloved fans for all the well wishes. We lost some uber talented people. Hire them! Deadpool will be a great game."
We'll update both stories as more information becomes available.
