A confirmed report has surfaced on GamesIndustry.biz detailing a surprised round of layoffs at Turbine, the developers of the award-winning Lord of the Rings Online among many other successful free online MMO games. The layoffs are apparently part of a restructuring by Warner Bros. Interactive, but they have yet to provide additional information on the exact number of employees that have been affected.
“As part of our normal business process, we’re routinely looking at
the strategic alignment of our company,” a Warner Bros. representative said.
“Unfortunately, in order for us to invest in growth areas at Turbine,
we have to eliminate some positions. These are always tough decisions,
which we don’t approach lightly, but it’s crucial that Turbine is
structured in a way that reflects the current and coming marketplace.
This is not the first time Warner Bros. Interactive have unexpectedly released staff working on Turbine’s MMO games. Since acquiring the development studio in 2010 they have announced similar layoffs on two different occasions. The first of which was in February 2014, at which time they released an identical statement to what they did today.
Source: GamesIndustry.biz