Embracer-owned Crystal Dynamics, the developer best known for Marvel’s Avengers and the modern Tomb Raider series, is laying off an undisclosed number of staff.
Announced yesterday via LinkedIn, the studio pointed to “evolving business conditions” as the reason behind the job cuts.
“This decision was not made lightly,” the post reads. “It was necessary, however, to ensure the long-term health of our studio and core creative priorities in a continually shifting market.”
The post then goes on to address the laid off workers, saying that Crystal Dynamics is “offering the full extent of support and resources at our disposal during this transition.” Regarding the future of the studio, the “future of Tomb Raider” remains “unaffected” by the layoffs. This is seemingly referencing Crystal Dynamics’ next Tomb Raider game that was announced back in December 2022 by Amazon, with the company acting as publisher.
This is the third round of layoffs since Embracer Group acquired the studio in 2022. As Embracer issued an absurd number of mass layoffs, project cancellations, and divestments across its portfolio, Crystal Dynamics conducted job cuts in 2023 and early this year.
The layoffs come a month after Xbox canceled the Perfect Dark reboot
Last month, Xbox shut down The Initiative, the primary developer working on the Perfect Dark reboot. According to an email sent to employees by Matt Booty, head of Xbox Game Studios, The Initiative was closed to “adjust priorities and focus resources to set up our teams for greater success within a changing industry landscape.”
The closure of The Initiative also affected its development partnership with Crystal Dynamics, as the studio had been brought in to lend a hand back in 2021.
Yesterday’s announcement doesn’t mention the studio’s closure nor the Perfect Dark reboot, but some developers did. As reported by IGN, one former employee said on Bluesky that they were “let go from Crystal Dynamics as Perfect Dark was canceled.” Via LinkedIn, senior narrative designer Quinn Elmer said they were “continually impressed” by the work of level designer Chris Sharpe “when working with him on Perfect Dark,” who was also caught in layoffs.
