Transmission Games Lays Off 20+ Developers

Independent Melbourne-based development house Transmission Games has laid off more than 20 staff members, Gamasutra has learned from multiple reliable sources. According to one source, the employees were notified today, Thursday, October 1. Founded in 1996 and one of the longest running Australian studios, Transmission Games was known as IR Gurus, until it adopted its current moniker in 2008. Despite the redundancies, the studio has been busy in 2009. This month, the company released the combat flight game Heroes Over Europe, a sequel to its 2005 title Heroes of the Pacific. In August it released Ashes Cricket 2009, which reached the top spot in the UK game charts -- and with both recent games being published on multiple platforms. The company has a broad focus on sport- and flight-related games. Late last year, a GameSpot Australia blog report pegged the company's overall staff count at 135. No details were initially available on what specific teams were affected by the layoffs, or what impact the move will have on Transmission's plans going forward.