THQ Confirms Volition, Kaos Layoffs

THQ confirmed to Gamasutra that this week it laid off over 30 employees across Homefront house Kaos Studios and Red Faction developer Volition. "We have had to let go of 16 employees at Volition, our studio in Champaign, Illinois," said THQ in a statement. "We must adjust our workforce to fit the studio's current needs, which is a relatively common occurrence in the game development industry." Volition is one of THQ's top internal studios, and home of key franchises including the sci-fi action series Red Faction and the open-world crime game Saints Row. The studio is currently at work on upcoming new entries in each of those franchises, as well as a project called Insane in collaboration with film director Guillermo Del Toro. "Steps are being taken to ensure team members affected by the transition are treated with appropriate concern," THQ's statement added. "The changes are not expected to affect any current or future titles in development with Volition." A THQ rep told Gamasutra 220 employees remain at the studio. The THQ rep was confirming an email from a source within the studio who said the layoffs at Volition happened on March 29, and that the cuts affected "both new and long-term employees." Also affected by layoffs was THQ's Kaos Studios, which just released the first-person shooter Homefront, a game that sold over 1 million units worldwide a little over a week after its March 15 launch. The THQ rep said 17 workers were let go from the studio today and that about 70 employees remain at the studio. THQ said, "Kaos has a dedicated team in place that will continue to support Homefront with an ongoing, robust DLC and content plan, as well as working on pre-production for future games." "We have made changes to ensure that the team size aligns to the current stages of internal product development," the statement added. The publisher said it will offer outplacement assistance to help with future employment.