Eat Sleep Play, better known as the crew behind Twisted Metal, has reportedly laid off eight members of its staff last week as it moves towards the release of the game.
The layoffs at the Salt Lake City-based studio represent 20 percent of the company, which currently employs 26 developers.
The company's co-founder and outspoken game designer David Jaffe is also expected to leave Eat Sleep Play in pursuit of casual games, according to a report by the Salt Lake City Tribune.
Best known for his work on the God of War series for the PlayStation and Twisted Metal, the news that Jaffe may leave AAA titles behind him to pursue casual games is a shocking development.
Eat Sleep Play's co-founder Scott Campbell attributed the company's shifting interests to the rising popularity of the iOS and its ability to reach more people.
"It's a platform that's in our pockets almost 24/7," he said. "It's kind of the size and types of games we're playing. You can certainly reach more people. That's pretty exciting for us."
Campbell added that David Jaffe was excited to go into the casual space. "He's got some projects that he's excited about," said Campbell. "So we're kind of going down two separate paths."
Twisted Metal is set for release on February 14, exclusive to the PlayStation 3.
