Cuts across the gaming industry continue to unfold as big tech shifts. The latest company to see major job cuts is Amazon, with the company confirming on Tuesday that it is laying off 14,000 employees.
An unknown portion of these job cuts is falling on the company's gaming division, with Bloomberg reporting that the cuts are primarily taking place at Amazon Games' Irvine and San Diego studios, as well as the publishing division.
In a statement reviewed by Bloomberg, Steve Boom, vice president of audio, Twitch, and games, says that the company is “leaning into the things that Amazon does best," while pulling back much of its internal game development, especially for larger MMO (massively multiplayer online) titles.
Why are the layoffs happening? Broadly, Amazon claims it is focusing on a leaner structure and accomplishing more through the use of generative AI.
"Some may ask why we’re reducing roles when the company is performing well. Across our businesses, we're delivering great customer experiences every day, innovating at a rapid rate, and producing strong business results. What we need to remember is that the world is changing quickly," says Beth Galetti, senior vice president of people experience and technology at Amazon.
"This generation of AI is the most transformative technology we’ve seen since the Internet, and it's enabling companies to innovate much faster than ever before (in existing market segments and altogether new ones). We’re convinced that we need to be organized more leanly, with fewer layers and more ownership, to move as quickly as possible for our customers and business."
Where does this leave Amazon Games?
Amazon Games has had a long road up until now, with some projects not coming to fruition while the company slowly acquired or opened new studios.
Infamously, Amazon Games launched a hero shooter called Crucible, with a poor reception leading to the game being taken back into beta before being cancelled outright.
In 2021, Amazon found some success with New World, an internally developed MMORPG that saw huge player counts at launch. The company also published Lost Ark in 2023, another MMORPG that was developed by Smilegate.
Amazon also recently published a party game called King of Meat, which tasks groups of players with going through dungeons in co-op together.
At this time, it's not clear where this leaves several upcoming projects from Amazon Games. Notably, the company's Orange County studio was leading development on an MMO set in the world of The Lord of the Rings after reaching a deal with Embracer Group.
Amazon Games also signed a publishing deal with Maverick Games for the team's upcoming debut racing title, while Amazon Games is also publishing the next Tomb Raider game from developer Crystal Dynamics. Neither of these titles have a release date right now.
Given the scale of the layoffs, it's not clear exactly what will happen in the near future, but it seems unlikely the company will be expanding with numerous large-scale projects, internally or externally.
Is Amazon Games cancelling any upcoming projects as part of these layoffs?
It's currently unclear if any of Amazon's upcoming games have been cancelled because of the job cuts.
What is Maverick Games?
Maverick Games is an independent studio founded by former Playground Games staff. Maverick Games is currently working on an open world racing title.
Will the Amazon Games layoffs affect New World?
It's quite possible and likely that the cuts at Amazon Games will impact the future of New World, which has received numerous updates since it first launched.
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