In what may be seen as fairly drastic action, Activision has shut down three development studios and laid off staff at two others.
Underground Development (Guitar Hero Van Halen, Dave Mirra Freestyle BMX) will join Luxoflux (Vigilante 8, Transformers) and RedOctane as casualties of the latest round of studio closures. RedOctane is best known for publishing the first few Guitar Hero games before being bought by Activision in 2006.
While not shut down, almost half of the staff at Radical Entertainment (Prototype) received their pink slips, as did an undisclosed number of workers at Neversoft (Tony Hawk).
A statement released by Activision cites a new strategy as the reason for the job losses.
"Activision Publishing continually evaluates its resources to ensure that they are properly matched against its product slate and strategic goals," the statement read. "We are directing our resources against the largest and most profitable business segments, and as part of this initiative, we are realigning our resources to better reflect our slate and the market opportunities."
