Earlier this year, PlayStation announced a "reduction in workforce" that impacted several of the company's first-party studios, including Insomniac Games, Naughty Dog, and Firesprite. Some studios were hit harder than others, and the decision led to the closure of PlayStation London Studio. While we've known about the closure since late February, it appears that the company is now officially closed. The PlayStation London Studio Twitter account shared a message today thanking fans for their support over the last two decades.

London Studios' Statement
"For over twenty years London Studio has been home to some exceptionally talented and wonderful people in the games industry. As we close the doors, and all go forward to new adventures, we wanted to say a heartfelt thank you, to all our past and present, players and colleagues who have supported us over the years. We've had one wild and wonderful journey," the company wrote on Twitter.

The post was met with several positive responses from fans who thanked the developers at London Studio for their hard work over the years. Many expressed sadness that we won't be seeing more from the company, and at the current state of the video game industry where so many developers are being shut down. During its impressive time as a developer, London Studio contributed quite a bit to PlayStation platforms, from PlayStation Home on PS3, to the Singstar series, and Blood & Truth on PS VR.

A Turbulent Time for the Video Game Industry
In its announcement of the closure earlier this year, PlayStation noted that the closure and layoffs were part of "a re-evaluation of how we operate." The last year or so has been a turbulent one for the video game industry, as companies like PlayStation, Xbox, and Embracer Group have laid off employees or closed entire studios in an effort to streamline and cut costs. At this time, we don't know if more closures can be expected at PlayStation, or what first-party studios might be impacted. Regardless, these moves have led to a lot of frustration from fans, as talented developers are forced to look for new work, and promising projects end up getting cancelled.

Hopefully things will start to stabilize more, and the developers at London Studio will be able to locate new places of business. There's a lot of uncertainty surrounding the video game industry at the moment, but the developer's work has clearly struck a chord with a lot of players around the world; hopefully other companies will see that level of success and recruit those currently in search of work.

Posted: May 26, 2024 9:30 pm
Related Forum: PlayStation Forum

Source: https://comicbook.com/gaming/news/playstation-london-studio-farewell-statement-shut-down/