Evening Star, the studio behind Penny’s Big Breakaway, has announced layoffs. Six team members are being let go due to volatile market conditions in the games industry and operational realities of the business.
CTO Hunter Bridges announced the redundancies on X/Twitter, stating that the decision was not taken lightly. CEO Dave Padilla also commented on the situation, stating that the studio had been affected by the same turbulence that has affected many of their peers in the games industry over the last year and a half.
Padilla added that despite their best efforts to secure another project, they are now in the unfortunate situation of having to lay off some of the team members who worked on Penny’s Big Breakaway. He encouraged anyone with available positions to consider hiring these developers, stating that they are “best in class” and would be a valuable addition to any project.
Padilla also offered to provide references for the affected developers, highlighting their skills and talent. This move is a significant blow to the studio, which had received critical acclaim for Penny’s Big Breakaway.
Evening Star’s layoffs are the latest in a series of job losses in the games industry. Most recently, Microsoft laid off a further 650 Xbox staff, following 1900 layoffs in January. These moves highlight the challenges faced by the industry and the need for studios to adapt to changing market conditions.