Update (2/26/24): A spokesperson for Take-Two said it has “no comment to give on the Popcore layoffs.”
Earlier this month, the Grand Theft Auto publisher revealed it was preparing cost reduction plans after lowering its financial outlook for the current fiscal year.
At the time, Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick said the company had “no current plans” to conduct layoffs, as other studios have done. But plans have evidently changed since then.
Original story: Layoffs occurred at mobile studio Popcore earlier in February, according to employees who’ve been affected. These mark the third set of layoffs revealed today behind Supermassive Games and Die Gute Fabrik.
Several ex-staff revealed on LinkedIn they were hit by the Berlin developer’s recent layoff wave. According to growth specialist Anna Mikhalovskaia, these reductions were “company-wide.”
“I was laid off together with my beloved colleagues,” she wrote. “While it’s always challenging to say goodbye, I’m immensely grateful for the experiences and growth this opportunity brought me.”
At time of writing, it’s unclear how many workers specifically were affected. But members from the design, QA, and engineering teams confirmed they were impacted.
“All adventures come to an end, and so did mine at Popcore,” added lead designer Alex Zenicks.
Popcore was founded in 2018, and has developed titles such as Scavenger Hunt and Parking Jam 3D. In 2022, the studio was acquired by Rollic, a subsidiary of Take-Two (via Zynga).
Zynga specifically acquired it for its puzzle games, which would help Rollic stand as a “leading hyper casual publisher.”
Game Developer has reached out to Take-Two and Popcore for comment, and will update when a response is given.