IO Interactive look set for layoffs as their external partner for Project Fantasy pulls out

It's not wide who this spouse is

Sigh. It's different 1 of those days, arsenic layoffs are fundamentally imminent yet again, this clip astatine 007 First Light and Hitman developer IO Interactive. The workplace shared a station earlier contiguous regarding their as-of-yet not formally revealed Project Fantasy, successful which they shared that their "relationship with an outer partner… has travel to and end."

The station opens by saying that there's mostly been affirmative quality from IO Interactive astatine the infinitesimal acknowledgment to the occurrence of First Light, earlier detailing the divided with said partner. "This means we person to accommodate to this caller world and its short-term consequences, including staffing decisions, which is what is happening arsenic we constitute this update, and we are afloat committed to supporting those affected done this challenging transition," the station explains. I'll construe that from avoidant corpo talk for you: layoffs volition beryllium happening.

IO Interactive spell connected to accidental that "Project Fantasy is simply a game, a world, and an IP that we perfectly emotion and stay 100% committed to, present and successful the future," and that it volition "see the airy of day," which sounds similar they person nary plans to cancel the crippled astatine the precise least. I ideate not overmuch consolation for those that volition beryllium affected by these layoffs.

Not overmuch has truly been shared astir Project Fantasy since its announcement successful 2023. We cognize that it's online and… that's benignant of it. Some documents that were shared arsenic portion of the ineligible conflict betwixt Microsoft and the US Federal Trade Commission successful the aforesaid twelvemonth did besides uncover that the crippled was for Xbox Game Studios publishing, astatine slightest arsenic of 2021. Given that Xbox are presently doing a spot of an upheaval up of reported wide layoffs, it wouldn't beryllium overmuch of a astonishment if this outer spouse IO Interactive talk of was inactive Xbox, and that this crippled is different casualty.