Private Division impacted by layoffs at Take-Two Interactive

Take-Two has laid off members of its publishing subsidiary Private Division. 

Speaking to Game Developer, Take-Two spokesperson Alan Lewis confirmed the layoffs, saying they mainly affected corporate operations and label publishing divisions. He explained that the cuts will "better align our organization with our long-term priorities."

"We continue to make strategic investments in our talent and technology to deliver our long-term pipeline, and the impact of these changes on our U.S. development teams has been minimal. [...] Take-Two has experienced exponential growth in recent years, and we are taking these necessary steps to position the company for another extended period of success.”

Private Division first opened in December 2017, and is the third publishing label of Take-Two alongside Rockstar and 2K Games. The studio has published multiple indie games for Take-Two.

Last month, Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick indicated that layoffs were on the horizon as part of a larger $50 million reduction plan following missed third quarter projections. 

At the time, Zelnick said those layoffs would be going "department by department and trying to drive efficiency."

Along with the recently released Kerbal Space Program 2 and last year's Rollerdrome, it's also published physical versions of Supergiant's Hades and Obsidian Entertainment's The Outer Worlds from 2019, before it was acquired by Microsoft.

Not long after Zelnick's statements, Marvel's Midnight Suns developer Firaxis lost two of its veteran staff, creative director Jake Solomon and studio head Steve Martin. The game was touted as a "creative achievement," but a sales disappointment. 

Zelnick danced around the game's performance in the third quarter report back then, but said it was one of its new releases that was "in the earlier stages of building their player base."