It’s always a bit of a downer to hear about project cancellations in the gaming industry. This week, we’ve got some uncompromising news from 11 Bit Studios, who announced they’ve decided to pull the plug on their game, Project 8, resulting in layoffs at the studio. Let’s dive into what happened.
A statement released earlier this week revealed that 37 people were working on Project 8 until the decision was made to cancel it. The reasons behind this cancellation are varied and quite insightful, as shared by Przemyslaw Marszal, President of 11 Bit Studios.
“With Project 8, we experienced both breakthroughs and setbacks,” he noted. Challenges during the COVID-19 pandemic made stabilizing the development team particularly tricky; however, progress was still being made. While they saw quality improvements along the way, some critical aspects remained problematic despite numerous iterations.
You might wonder how things escalated to this point. Well, Marszal mentioned that delays piled up over time, leading to an increase in budget with every milestone reached. It sounds like a classic case of trying to fix one thing but unearthing more issues instead!
The “tipping point” came after what he described as a thorough evaluation of their latest milestone. During this review process—considering internal assessments and independent surveys, the management discovered unresolved challenges that would necessitate further extensions of production timelines and budget increases. To fuel the fire were revised sales forecasts reflecting changes in market conditions, raising doubts about profitability.
The exact number of layoffs hasn’t been disclosed yet; however, “more than half” of the Project 8 team will have opportunities for other roles within the company. Those who are let go will receive severance packages, counseling, and assistance for job placement. Kudos to them for taking care of their staff!
