The SF MMO WildStar is losing part of its workforce. The reason for this is restructuring measures at the publisher NCSoft, which also affect Aion and Lineage.
The US magazine Polygon reports in a news article that they have a statement from NCSoft. According to this statement, NCSoft plans to restructure its key operations in the West (NCSoft is a Korean company). This restructuring involves continuing to focus on the core brands (Aion, WildStar, Lineage, and Guild Wars). At the same time, they also want to enter the mobile and tablet games market and engage with emerging technologies (currently, this is often referred to as Virtual Reality in industry language).
To implement this restructuring, it is necessary to lay off employees in the existing core brands, except for ArenaNet, the creators of Guild Wars 2. They did not take these decisions lightly. They wish all those being let go the best. You can read the original statement here:
Today we announced a restructuring of key operations within NC West. As a result of this restructuring, we are implementing staff reductions across our Western operations with the exclusion of ArenaNet. While decisions like this are always hard, they are necessary as we begin the implementation of a new strategy designed to strengthen our footing as a leader in global entertainment.
Moving forward, we will continue to focus on our core development capabilities and the intellectual properties (WildStar, Aion, Lineage, and Guild Wars franchises) that have made NCSOFT what it is today. However, we are looking to move into new business segments like mobile and tablet games as well as explore emerging technologies.
Again, the decision to reduce staff was not an easy one, and we sincerely wish everyone well in their next endeavors.
Thus ends the official part of the news.
Polygon says: A source who wishes to remain anonymous approached the magazine and provided further details. According to the source, especially Carbine, the studio behind WildStar, is affected by the layoffs. About 60 employees had to go. The source does not disclose how many are employed at Carbine in total. They speak of “a few hundred,” so two hundred upwards. The source further states that the layoffs are not limited to a specific level at Carbine, but extend across all floors and hierarchies.
