Report: Layoffs suspected at Rockstar studio

Rockstar’s Massachusetts studio is expected to have axed its entire internal QA team as well as a handful of production staff.

According to unnamed sources cited on news site Kotaku, it is said that around ten percent of Rockstar New England’s entire staff have been handed their notice. Rockstar has not confirmed the speculation.

One insider insisted that axing the internal QA department is part of Rockstar’s wider plan to handle all quality assurance in one dedicated studio. If true, it is uncertain what that would mean for the fate of the QA departments at Rockstar Games’ eight other studios.

England-based Rockstar Lincoln has transformed itself in recent years, moving from Game Boy GTA developer to a dedicated QA and localisation centre. It is unclear if this studio handles the entire quality testing process for Rockstar’s eight other development studios.

Sources also suggest that Rockstar has issued “fairly generous” generous severance packages, with the company helping the allegedly axed staff find new jobs.