Summary
It’s been a rough couple of years for the gaming industry, and despite mass layoffs and studio closures almost every single month, the hard times keep coming. Yet another promising studio closed its doors today, as The Order: 1886, Daxter, andGod of Wardeveloper Ready at Dawn has been shut down by parent company Meta just four years after being acquired.
Ready at Dawn was acquired by Meta exclusively for its VR development capabilities, as the studio had big commercial and critical hits with both Echo VR and Lone Echo. Unfortunately, that success hasn’t stopped Meta from shutting the studio down, as according to a Meta spokespersonspeaking with Android Central, the move to close Ready at Dawn was made to stay within new budget constraints so that Oculus Studios can have a “better long-term impact” in VR development.
Meta announced on August 1 in itsmost recent earnings reportsthat Meta Quest sales were “exceeding expectations” this quarter, and that the company earned $39 billion in revenue.
Because closing Ready at Dawn wasn’t a cost-cutting measure to save money, Meta has also claimed that Ready at Dawn’s closure does not mean wider cuts will take place, and that the number of first-party games coming to Meta Quest systems will not be affected. Meta also reiterates that it remains dedicated to VR development, despite closing one of its most promising studios.
Ready At Dawn Has Been Added To 2024’s Long List Of Studio Closures
Studio closures have always been a thing, but it’s been particularly rough in 2024, as we see mass layoffs and thousands of talented people within the industry losing their jobs. Just over the past week,Bungie underwent its second round of layoffsdespite the critical success of Destiny 2: The Final Shape,while Game Informer was killed off completely.
Microsoft managed to upset everyone earlier this year by shutting down four of its own studios,including Arkane Austin and Tango Gameworks, the latter of which delivered Xbox’s best exclusive title in a decade with Hi-Fi Rush. PlayStation is just as bad with studio closures,having shut down both London Studioand Deviation Games,the latter of which had yet to release a single game. Layoffs are happening almost every week, yet all we can do is cross our fingers and hope things improve soon. Oh, and unionize,everyone should do that too.
