Three Fields Entertainment, developer of the THQ Nordic-published racing game Wreckreation, has put the entire studio on redundancy notice.
The announcement was made by CEO Fiona Sperry earlier today via LinkedIn. “Today I am having to share one of the hardest messages of my career,” the post begins. “After twelve years of building and nurturing Three Fields Entertainment, I am forced into the situation of today placing our entire team on notice of redundancy.”
The developer launched Wreckreation on October 28. According to Sperry, the studio will “not see revenue from game sales for the foreseeable future,” and that development for most of this year and all of the post launch content has been self-funded.
“Without the enthusiasm or financial support from our publisher to continue development, we simply cannot sustain the studio in its current form. Making this decision has been unbelievably painful.”
According to Sperry, the team had plans for multiple features, updates, and creative ideas in the pipeline, which are showcased in a video included in the LinkedIn post. The CEO’s hope, then, is that by showing this in-progress work publicly, “someone out there might also see that potential and perhaps an opportunity could still emerge.”
“But even if that hope does not materialize, we want this to stand as a testament to our vision and to the strength, passion, and skill of our tiny team,” Sperry continues. “I truly believe in the potential of this game and in the brilliance of the people who built it.”
Three Fields Entertainment isn’t the only studio that worked with THQ Nordic that has laid off staff. Last year, over a month after releasing Alone in the Dark, developer Pieces Interactive reportedly laid off an unknown number of staff. It’s worth remembering that THQ Nordic is under parent company Embracer Group, which has issued several restructuring programs during the past few years. Just this week, Eidos-Montréal, which is also under the Embracer umbrella, reportedly laid off staff and canceled most internal projects.
Game Developer has contacted THQ Nordic for more information on the matter.
