MCV/DEVELOP News, events, research and jobs from the games industry
Canadian developer of Too Human Silicon Knights has laid of 26 staff, according to a report on Joystiq – but the move is just a temporary one as the studio gets ready to work on new projects.
Silicon Knights, whose headcount is now just over 150 (it was 180 pre-lay offs), also developed Metal Gear Solid: The Twin Snakes and Eternal Darkness.
In a statement, SK said the expand and contract pattern was common for developers working on a big title, and that it hoped to offer new employment contracts to those staff who lost their jobs when work begins on new projects.
The statement reads: "After any big game ships, there is always some attrition. Teams are lean and mean in the beginning, grow toward the end of the project, and then whittle down once the project is finished. To that end, Silicon Knights temporary [sic] laid-off 26 employees today while they ramp up on other projects. All the company’s directors and leads are still at Silicon Knights and working on its next projects.
"The slight cutback comes after four years of unprecedented growth for the St. Catharines’, Ontario (Canada) company, during which its headcount had expanded to more than 180 employees.
"Denis Dyack, President and founder of the company, stated, ‘Silicon Knights is currently working on several new and exciting games that will be announced to the public in the coming months. In addition to those projects, Silicon Knights continues to develop and promote other new and original ideas, which will become the innovative games of tomorrow. These 26 individuals are hard-working and valued team members that we hope to bring back as we ramp up on our future projects.’"
