Neverwinter Devs Affected by Layoffs, a Developer Claims [Update]
A plague of layoffs has hit yet another development studio. Cryptic Studios, which you may associate with Star Trek Online or Neverwinter, was said to have fallen victim to the downsizing.
Update: A representative of Cryptic Studios confirmed that there have been layoffs, but did not elaborate on their scale. He also revealed that from now on the developer will operate under the supervision of DECA Games.
According to the latest reports Cryptic Studios is another company under the Embracer group that is facing layoffs. Such information emerged after one of the developers, Winter Mullenix, announced on LinkedIn, that she had lost her job at the company as a result of "downsizing" (via GamesIndustry.biz).
"Today marks the end of my tenure as Narrative Director for Cryptic Studios due to a reduction in work force. I will always look back at these times with a profound sense of gratitude. If you are in need of a narrative director, a principal narrative designer, or someone to lead your writers' room, let's talk! Similarly, if you are looking to connect with anyone else who was impacted by the reduction in work force, I'm happy to introduce you as well," former Cryptic Studios employee communicated.
At the time of writing this news, representatives of both companies have not taken an official position on the matter, so the details and scope of the layoffs are not known.
As I mentioned at the beginning, Cryptic Studios is another team that has fallen victim to restructuring at Embracer Group in recent months. In June, the corporation announced that the company would be making major changes to its business strategy as a result of the unfavorable stock market listing. As a result, a number of employees from Crystal Dynamics, Gearbox Publishing, Beamdog or Rainbow Studios have been laid off.
Recall that Cryptic Studios was founded in 2004. In the course of their almost 20-year activity, the developers have created such games as City of Heroes and Neverwinter. The developers' most recent work was Star Trek Online for PS4 and Xbox One, released in 2016.
