“Australia’s largest studio” PlaySide announces restructure and job cuts
“It is also an appropriate time to reflect on our obligation to employees and shareholders,” says CEO
PlaySide Studios is laying off an unspecified number of developers.
As spotted by Game Developer, the studio – self-described as “Australia’s largest video game developer” – confirmed the layoffs as part of a restructure in a statement to investors.
The studio recorded revenue of $40.9m (AUD$64.6m) earlier this year. For FY25, revenue had expected to be between $39.3m-$43.1m (AUD$62-68m), but this has since been revised downward to $31.7m-$34.2m (AUD$50-54m).
The studio said the restructure and redundancies will save the firm $2.5m-$3.1m (AUD$4-$5m), although the restructure itself will initially cost an additional $954,000 (AUD$1.5m). It’s thought the cuts will primarily impact its work-for-hire and “non-project specific” workforce.
Affected staff will be offered “outplacement support and counselling services.”
PlaySide Studios works on both its own self-published games as well as projects developed in collaboration with studios, such as Disney, Pixar, Warner Bros, and Nickelodeon.
“Today we’ve made the decision to commence a consultation process across our studios,” said CEO, Benn Skender. “We will be offering outplacement support and counselling services to personnel whose employment ends as a result of the restructure, and our thoughts are with affected staff on what is a difficult and sad day for all PlaySiders.
“While a prolonged period with no new contract signings has been the catalyst, it is also an appropriate time to reflect on our obligation to employees and shareholders to ensure that we strive to build resilience into the Company’s business model. We will continue to look for ways to convert successful Original IP launches into a stronger balance sheet and a more valuable business.”
In the first three months of 2025 alone, 1200 developers have lost their jobs, with cuts and closures at Freejam, Splash Damage, Piranha Games, Jar of Sparks, Ubisoft, ProbablyMonsters, Iron Galaxy, Sumo Group, Liquid Sword, NetEase Games, Toast Interactive, Night School Studio, Striking Distance, Until Dawn remake developers, Ballistic Moon, and – most recently – Eidos Montréal.
