The video game industry isn’t in the best position right now, especially with the actions of both Sony and Microsoft in the last week alone. It seems that every month, if not every week, something is going on that helps lower the “value” of the industry as a whole and makes people wonder what will happen next. The proof of this came yesterday when Microsoft shut down four studios, including two big ones under the Bethesda umbrella via Tango Gameworks and Arkane Austin. Both of these companies shutdowns saw outrage from many, but in the case of Ken Levine, they also saw support toward the laid-off workers.
Specifically, on Twitter, Ken Levine, the current head of Ghost Story Studios and maker of legendary games like Bioshock, made a post stating that he’d love for some of the people who now used to work at Arkane Austin to come work for him on his new game, Judas:
This is a kind gesture. To be clear, he’s not the only one who has done that since this event started. Others have reached out to Arkane Austin and the others who were affected and offered to bring in some of their staff to try and help make the situation more manageable.
In a different tweet, Levine noted that Arkane “is the creator of two of my favorite game franchises of all time, Prey and Dishonored. I’m sad and disappointed to see the Austin studio close down, but there is a dedicated group of devs who are committed to keeping the torch of that genre alive and vibrant.”
Oh, and he wasn’t lying about loving those titles he named, as he thinks one of the DLCs for them is the best DLC ever created:
Unique opinions aside, it’s nice to see that the gaming community, especially on the developer side, is coming together to try and make things better for those who were laid off.
The problem is that while this is a nice gesture, it won’t be enough to help everyone. Even with Levine’s post, he noted that he was looking for specific people to help him, and the other studios that made offers are likely looking to fill some “needed roles” too, not just taking in anyone who was let go.
Plus, you need to remember that these weren’t the only layoffs in 2024; they were just the most recent ones; there are likely hundreds, if not thousands, of people within the industry, still looking for jobs, and it’s not going to end anytime soon.
