Crysis 4 "on hold" as Crytek lays off 15% of its workforce
Crytek, the studio best known for the Crysis series and CryEngine, has announced that it will lay off 15% of its workforce, with Crysis 4 development on hold.
The details:
The Frankfurt-based developer confirmed the cuts in a post on X, citing the current state of the gaming industry. “Like so many of our peers, we aren’t immune to the complex, unfavorable market dynamics that have hit our industry these past several years,” the statement reads. “It pains us greatly to share today that we must lay off an estimated 15% of our around 400 employees. The layoffs affect development teams and shared services. This has not been an easy decision to make, as we deeply appreciate the hard work of our talented teams.”
The studio claims that the layoffs were "inevitable to move forward" as while Hunt: Showdown 1896 is "growing" and has continued to cut costs, it would not be financially sustainable in the long term. Those affected by the layoffs will receive support in the form of severance packages and career assistance services.
Crytek also revealed that in the third quarter of last year, it decided to put Crysis 4 "on hold," but did not confirm what led to the decision. Since the project's suspension, it has shifted some of its staff over to Hunt: Showdown 1896, its unique multiplayer shooter, which it will continue to focus on going forward
Crysis 4 was announced in early 2022, nine years after the release of Crysis 3, and it was confirmed that Hitman 3 director Mattias Engström had joined the project later that year. Engström later returned to Hitman studio IO Interactive after leaving Crytek in November of last year when Crysis 4 was put on hold.
More gaming news:
Unity has been hit with another round of layoffs, this time announced via email at 5 a.m. PST and affecting entire teams.
