Embracer-owned studio Piranha Bytes acknowledges "difficult situation" as it faces potential closure

Embracer’s latest round of layoffs affect two studios, one of which had just been announced to be working on a major AAA.

Hytale, the spiritual successor to Minecraft, hasn't been impacted by the layoffs at Riot.

Last week, the internet began to speculate that Gothic and Elex II developer Piranha Bytes was being shut down after fans noticed the studio's website was essentially defunct. Many speculated Piranha Bytes was another casualty in owner Embracer Group's purge of studios that began last year after a planned $2 billion deal with Saudi Arabia-backed Savvy Games Group fell through in 2023.

German developer Piranha Bytes might be the latest studio to end up on Embracer Group's chopping block, although it's not over yet.

Piranha Bytes is reportedly facing closure as part of Embracer Group’s ongoing restructuring efforts.

Embracer Group is once again doing sterling work to demonstrate the perils of consolidation. Piranha Bytes, who are one of well over a hundred studios that Embracer bought up in recent years, today posted a statement on Xitter saying "Don't write us off yet!". The statement goes on to say that they're "convinced they will succeed". Succeed at what, you might ask? Not being shut down by Embracer.

The CEO of Wimo Games, Dave Rosen, has confirmed that the VR studio is closing down.

Several studios use various teams and studios to outsource some of the work. These studios help create some big title releases to smaller hits. So we wouldn’t fault you if you’re unfamiliar with Obelisk Studio. This team has been around for years but acted as an outsourcing co-development team. When a project needs a bit more help to cross the finish line, Obelisk Studio is one of the groups available. However, it looks like they are now trying to bring out a unique IP into the marketplace. 

One of the hardest things for gamers to see is a studio that was once on “top of the world” slowly falling apart and becoming a shell of its former self. We’re seeing this happening all over the place nowadays, with companies failing to capitalize on what’s important within the industry, layoffs happening due to “poor sales,” or even “overinvestments,” and so on. But the biggest one that has affected many studios is that they haven’t been able to make quality games like they used to, and Rocksteady Studios is the newest one to do that, which is where our story starts.

Rocksteady Studios co-founders Sefton Hill and Jamie Walker have reportedly opened a new gaming studio. The initial reporting comes from online postings through a website that lists the former Rocksteady Studios founders' new studio. While no announcement has been made, the studio is called Hundred Star Games.

Rocksteady co-founders Sefton Hill and Jamie Walker have reportedly formed a new development studio called Hundred Star Games.

Publisher Toge Productions and A Space for the Unbound developer Mojiken Studio have announced puzzle adventure game TEST TEST TEST. It is available now for PC via Steam as a free download.