Media: Authors of Gears of War: E-Day Fear Layoffs After Game's Release
There is an atmosphere of anxiety at The Coalition. This is reported by Eurogamer, which spoke with employees of the studio.
Gears of War: E-Day
According to Eurogamer’s sources, just a few months ago, the team felt more at ease. The Coalition was fairly confident they would avoid the mass layoffs at XBOX since they were preparing for the release of a major game, Gears of War: E-Day. However, after the narrative director of the project, Juan Vaca, was laid off last week, the situation changed abruptly, and the sense of security vanished.
Moreover, there is particular concern among The Coalition’s employees about the upcoming bonus payments. According to internal communications reviewed by Eurogamer, the size of the bonus is tied to Gears of War: E-Day's rating on Metacritic, making it crucial for them to achieve a good score. However, this isn't the main issue. The problem lies elsewhere – only those employees who are still with The Coalition at the time of the disbursement will receive bonuses, as per the contract terms. The studio’s management, according to sources, has tentatively set the payout for the end of October.
Now, many developers of Gears of War: E-Day are worried that if they are laid off before this date, they will not receive any bonus. In some cases, this could mean tens of thousands of dollars. Nevertheless, Eurogamer believes that technically, they should still be entitled to the bonuses, since those affected by the layoffs remain formally on staff for some time, but whether this is the case or not will become clear later.
Gears of War: E-Day is set to release on October 6 for PC and Xbox Series, including the Game Pass subscription. Notably, early critics are pleased with the game – at the time of writing, its rating on Metacritic stands at 87 out of 100.