Rockstar Games and 2K owner Take-Two Interactive has revealed that it’s planning layoffs across its divisions to reduce costs by around $50 million. This was announced around the same time as Take Two’s recent investor call, where it was also divulged that Grand Theft Auto V has sold over 175 million units to date, cementing its status as one of the best-selling video games of all time.
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Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick revealed to GamesIndustry.biz during a briefing call that the company was undergoing a ‘cost reduction program’ of $50 million, which would include, but would not be restricted to, layoffs. These cost reductions would mostly hit corporate and publishing, but every department would face scrutiny. Rockstar Intel confirmed that the Summer Internship program will be scrapped and cuts will be made across management, but $50 million is a massive hole, and many people’s lives will be affected by these cuts.
The cuts are due to Take-Two not meeting its predicted fiscal earnings for the previous quarter, forcing financial projections to be downgraded. The low fiscal earnings were attributed to slow sales from new games, such as the highly-acclaimed Marvel’s Midnight Suns, even though older titles, like GTA V and Red Dead Redemption 2, were still bringing in regular revenue. These slow sales, according to Zelnick, are especially prevalent on consoles.
It’s currently unclear how many people these layoffs will affect, as Take-Two hasn’t given a ballpark figure, unlike Microsoft, which let 10,000 staff go only a month ago. These layoffs are hitting companies throughout the entire industry, but it’s challenging to see them happening at a company that brings in so much money from franchises like Grand Theft Auto, and we hope that everyone affected by these layoffs can quickly find employment elsewhere.
