NetherRealm Studios has joined the ever-increasing list of developers and publishers who have been hit with layoffs over the last year and a half, a period that has seen thousands of jobs in the games industry being impacted.
Reportedly, NetherRealm Studios’ entire mobile team was shut down. The same was confirmed on LinkedIn by Tony Lazzara, a QA analyst who confirmed that he was one of several people at the studio to be laid off. As per Lazzara, NetherRealm’s mobile team was maintaining live service operations for a number of titles, including Injustice 2, Mortal Kombat Onslaught, and Mortal Kombat Mobile.
“Unfortunately, yesterday Netherrealm’s mobile team was shut down,” Lazzara wrote. “A ton of very talented people were put out of work. We had live services on multiple titles such as Mortal Kombat Mobile, Injustice 2, and Mortal Kombat Onslaught. I was also affected. Every single person I’ve worked with on that team is an amazing collaborator, passionate, and very creative.”
Several other former NetherRealm employees have also confirmed on LinkedIn that they have been let go by the studio, including animator Elizabeth Ramirez and associate software engineer Antonio De Francesco.
NetherRealm Studios or parent company WB Games haven’t yet officially commented on the layoffs or provided information on their scale, but Insider Gaming claims “at least” 50 jobs have been cut by the studio.