Christmas may be just around the corner, but the atmosphere is grim at WB Games Montréal.
According toRadio-Canada,the Canadian studio is letting go of 99 staff members, in a move that is directly tied to the unsatisfactory performance ofSuicide Squad: Kill the Justice League.
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Most of the victims are contract workers within the Keywords Studios QA team, which has made a name for itself as one of the primary compatibility and certification testers forthe Steam Deck.
A Tale of Surprise Layoffs
An affected worker explained to Radio-Canada that the announcement came as a shock. This summer, during the company’s biannual meeting,the managers had reiterated that WB Montréal had enough work to go around, and redundancies were not on the table.
The Keywords Studios QA crew got word ofthe layoffsduring a video conference earlier this week, following news thatSuicide Squad: Kill the Justice Leaguewouldno longer be supported.
The reports say thatemployees were given an eight-week notice period, during which they could either receive company counseling for finding a new opportunity or grab a place at the registerfor future work.
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Rumors are all we’re working off, but millions lost are some indication.
It comes as no surprise that some of those affected by the layoffs found the response unsatisfactory.
As much as advisory support is appreciated, the gaming industry is experiencing itsmost hostile job marketin decades, and there is not much HR counselors can do to change this.
Meanwhile, the register for future work is expected to call employees back from 2026 at the earliest.
As the year approaches its end, it leaves in its way a bloody trail of games and dev studiosthat could not make it to the finish line.
AlthoughSuicide Squad: Kill the Justice Leaguedid notbomb anywhere as badly asConcord, the game still left players underwhelmed.
To add some numbers to the mix, theQ2 2024 Warner Bros earning reportsays that"gaming revenue declined 41%", largely as a result of the weak sales of Suicide Squad since its February release.
Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice Leaguehad impressive character models and fun mechanics for the most part, butthe execution never quite worked out.
The game is set to getits last seasonal content dropon January 25th, 2025, drawing the curtains over yet another title that took part of its developers down with it.
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Suicide Squad: Kill The Justice League
WHERE TO PLAY
Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League is a co-op looter shooter following a group of rag-tag supervillains who are forced into defending Metropolis from an alien invasion — and a mind-controlled Justice League.
