After active development on Contraband was halted, Avalanche Studios has announced layoffs and the shuttering of its Liverpool studio. In a new statement on its website, the company cited the “current challenges to our business and the industry,” and how it “thoroughly reviewed” the best ways to ensure the studio group’s success.
“This review has led us to the difficult conclusion that we must make changes to our staging and locations. As a result, we are proposing to close our Liverpool studios, and to initiate a collective consultation process, as required by UK law.” Studios in Malmö and Stockholm will see workforce reductions and restructuring to “address our games’ needs.”
Avalanche Studios is best known for the Just Cause franchise, but it also worked on Mad Max, RAGE 2 and theHunter series. Its last project, Contraband, was announced back in 2021 in collaboration with Xbox Game Studios, with over 150 developers on board.
As if rumors of development problems and layoffs at the company last year weren’t enough, Xbox Game Studios would seemingly cancel the project following its own mass layoffs in July. Perfect Dark, Everwild and Project Blackbird were cancelled after years of development, while The Initiative shut down. Turn 10 Studios, Undead Labs, and many more also saw hefty layoffs.
Avalanche Studios Group hasn’t discussed its next title, so stay tuned for updates.
