FromSoftware is one of many triple-A studios that's managed to avoid layoffs over the past two years. And if president Hidetaka Miyazaki has anything to say about it, that'll remain the case as the industry's larger rough period persists.
Talking to PCGamer, the Elden Ring director was asked about the studio's ability to soldier on as other studios either cut staff or closed entirely. He doesn't want anyone at his studio to get cut "in a million years," a thought apparently shared by parent company Kadokawa.
"I think the people at Kadokawa...understand that I hold this view very strongly," he said. "While we can't say 100 percent...at least as long as this company is my responsibility, [layoffs are] something I would not let happen."
On its own, the statement would be affirming, but it takes on some extra potency as executives at Xbox, Sony, and EA have recently tried rationalizing their layoffs or openly benefitted from them financially.
Miyazaki went further by highlighting the late Satoru Iwata. In 2013 during the rough period of the Nintendo WiiU, the then-Nintendo president famously halved his pay to prevent layoffs.
That gesture gets brought up often, especially these days. In some cases, CEOs have cut their pay (or gone months without it), and in Miyazaki's eyes, keeping staff content is the most important part of running a studio.
"Iwata-san said that 'people who are afraid of losing their jobs are afraid of making good things.' I'm paraphrasing that, but I totally share this view."
FromSoftware's fortunes have surged thanks partly to Elden Ring and its Shadows of the Erdtree expansion. With Erdtree launching on Friday, Miyazaki hopes players "take a little bit of assurance" from his hopes to keep his team around as long as possible.
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