Media: Bend Studio terminated contracts with almost all freelance employees after the cancellation of a live-service game
Two weeks ago, it became known that Sony canceled live service games from Bend Studio and Bluepoint Games. As noted by the Game Developer portal, following this, Bend Studio decided to part ways with the vast majority of its freelance employees.
Days Gone
Game Developer discovered this information in the LinkedIn accounts of Bend Studio's freelance employees. Some of the employees have already left the studio, while others will work there until February 14. It is reported that ultimately Bend Studio will "lay off" all such workers except for a few people — they will be officially hired on staff.
The specialists with whom Bend Studio terminated contracts were primarily involved in level and system design. It is unknown how many people are affected or whether there were layoffs among full-time staff at the studio. It is also unclear what the situation is at Bluepoint Games.
Previously, a Sony representative told Bloomberg that the company would try to minimize the consequences of canceling games from Bend Studio and Bluepoint Games. He did not say whether there would be staff reductions but noted that the studios would not be closed.
Terminating contracts with freelance employees due to game cancellations is standard practice in the industry. For example, a year and a half ago, another Sony studio, Naughty Dog, made a similar move. As reported by Kotaku at the time, it parted ways with several dozen freelancers shortly before the cancellation of The Last of Us Online.