Rocksteady Studios, renowned for the Batman: Arkham series, has experienced further layoffs following the disappointing performance of Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League. The game's underperformance, reported in February as falling short of sales projections, initially resulted in a 50% reduction of the QA team in September. This latest round of job cuts, reported by Eurogamer, extends to the programming and art departments, occurring shortly before the release of the game's final update. Affected employees, speaking anonymously, confirmed the recent dismissals. Warner Bros. remains silent on the matter, mirroring their response to the September layoffs.
The financial strain of Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League impacted not only Rocksteady but also WB Games Montreal, which also announced layoffs in December, primarily affecting QA staff who supported the post-launch content of Suicide Squad. The final DLC, released December 10th, introduced Deathstroke as a playable character. While a final update is scheduled for later this month, the future of Rocksteady remains uncertain following the game's commercial failure. The project casts a shadow on the studio's otherwise impressive track record of critically acclaimed DC games. The substantial layoffs serve as a stark consequence of the live-service title's underwhelming reception.
