Square Enix recently announced a new medium-term business plan to focus on multi-platform releases and games delivering on the premise of “fun.” However, it also outlined plans to “rebuild overseas business divisions from the ground up,” which meant “optimizing costs at its European and American offices via structural reforms.” Unfortunately, it seems layoffs are part of the equation.
VGC reports that an internal meeting was held with President Takashi Kiryu announcing that its US and European offices would face layoffs due to “ongoing company restructuring.” The total number of layoffs is unknown, but Square Enix Collective (a UK-based division focused on indie releases), IT and publishing will be affected.
The layoffs are expected to roll out over the next month, though US employees could leave sooner. Square Enix hasn’t officially announced the same, but these would be the latest in a series of layoffs affecting the industry since the year began. Affected companies include the Embracer Group, Gearbox Entertainment, CI Games, Activision Blizzard, Xbox and Bethesda (including the recent closure of Tango Gameworks, Arkane Austin, and Alpha Dog Studios).