Over the past week, rumors have been circulating that “hundreds” of Activision Blizzard employees would be laid off this week. As most that were aware of these rumors suspected, they were true.
Today, during an earnings call, the company announced it would be letting 8% of its staff go. That’s approximately 800 employees total across Activision, Blizzard, and Candy Crush company, King.
The interesting thing is that Activision Blizzard CEO Bobby Kotick told investors on the coll that the company received “record results” for the year. In fact, during its fourth quarter, the company brought in $7.26 billion from physical and digital sales. That’s up from $7.16 billion in 2017.
Despite these results, Kotic said he felt the company missed the mark when it came to meeting the expectations set forth for 2018. Because of this, the company will be cutting personnel not related to game development. According to Kotaku, that includes Blizzard publishing and esports.
As it turns out, the layoffs also impact community management and social media staff. Robert Taylor, a PR staffer at Activision Blizzard, was let go after 12 years with the company.
After 12 years of being under the Activision Blizzard umbrella, I am now a free agent. Both companies are getting a ton of shit, but I have worked with some of the best and most talented people in the business at both places. I wish them nothing but success. PR guy LFG.
— Robert Taylor (@clipperrob) February 12, 2019
In the wake of the layoffs, #gamedev and #gamejobs are once again trending on Twitter, with developers encouraging anyone affected to apply with them. So far, Riot Games, Ready At Dawn, Hinterland Games, Sumo Digital, 2K Games, and many others have tweeted their current openings.
Prior to the announcement — and in reaction to the rumors — individuals compiled a list of developer job listings in a handy Google Docs file.
The list is being constantly curated and updated.
