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Midnight Society, the studio developing Deadrop, has announced substantial layoffs but upheld its commitment to the 2025 game release. It joins a game industry trend.
Initial reports of the layoffs surfaced on LinkedIn during the weekend, where ex-employees shared the news. Tyler Moore, a past senior environment artist, stated he was “one of the many artists affected by the layoffs at Midnight Society”. Chris Herrin, who held a similar role, also announced he is now seeking new job opportunities. Midnight Society has since confirmed the layoffs, according to PC Gamer.
A studio representative explained that unforeseen challenges led to the decision to reduce the workforce “significantly” to secure the company’s future. Despite the difficulties, the studio remains dedicated to the planned 2025 release of the NFT extraction shooter Deadrop.
The studio has not disclosed the exact number of layoffs, but Deadrop content creator Jok5rr alleged on Twitter that around 50% of the staff was impacted.
On Friday, roughly 50% of the development team at Midnight Society were laid off. This was unexpected and crushing to see for those of us in the community. Obviously, the studio has been through a lot due to the recent drama surrounding Doc.
Today, Rob Bowling gave us an update… pic.twitter.com/eF2boJyKwn
— JOK5RR (@JOK5RR) September 10, 2024
Jok5rr also references Guy Beahm, known publicly as DrDisrespect, who was removed from Midnight Society in June admitting to “inappropriate” correspondence with a minor in 2017. As a co-founder of Midnight Society in 2021, Beahm played a crucial promotional role for Deadrop, capitalizing on his broad online reach. His departure created significant challenges for the studio, since his character was pivotal to both the game’s appeal and its promotional efforts, prompting many supporters to walk away from the project.
Recent Layoffs in the Gaming Industry
The gaming industry has recently experienced a surge in layoffs.
In mid-August, Ubisoft reduced its U.S. workforce by 45 employees as part of ongoing cutbacks. In early September, Rocksteady Studios cut nearly half of its QA team following the underperformance of Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League. Tilting Point laid off up to 90 staff members, about 20% of its workforce, due to industry challenges, and will provide job placement support and an alumni network. Ballistic Moon also let go of several staff, including developers, programmers, and animators, amid widespread industry cutbacks.
