It’s been eight years sinceFablecreator Peter Molyneux stepped down from leading the now-defunct Lionhead Studios.The veteran British game designerhas not been idle, releasing several games as head of 22Cans. In 2019, he showed off the studio’s upcoming creativity toy/management simLegacy.
Unfortunately, Peter Molyneux’s new company may be in a spot of bother. Word has come out that 22Cans recently laid off an undisclosed number of employees.
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Gameindusry.biz broke the story on Tuesday. A spokesperson from 22Cans stressed that the company is not shutting down. The studio merely faces the unfortunate necessity of dismissing redundant staffers. The source was somewhat vague as to why the layoffs were necessary, though. According to the spokesperson, “Unfortunately, due to a number of factors including projects reaching a certain stage in their development, we can confirm that a number of roles at 22Cans have been made redundant.”
The project in question is most likelyLegacy, which the studio has been working on for the last few years. It’s not clear which positions were deemed “redundant.” However, artists and other early development staffers are likely first on the chopping block.
Peter Molyneux started 22Cans shortly after departing Lionhead Studios in 2012. Often criticized for his ambition outpacing reality, the British game designer is known for his experimentality. 22Cans’ first title was the strange and controversialCuriosity: What’s Inside the Cube?As much of a social experiment as a game,Curiositytasked online players with opening a mysterious, multilayered, digital box. As is often the case with Molyneux, he faced criticism for overhyping the significance of the box’s contents, among other things.
22Cans’ second game,Godus, was similarly troublesomefor the legendary developer and his young studio. The Spiritual successor to Peter Molyneux’sPopulous,Godusreceived mediocre to poor reviews. 22Cans ultimately abandoned the PC version of Godus, which never made it out of early access. It wasn’t until the studio’s third title, a quirky survival adventure game calledThe Trail, that it began seeing success.
Given the studio’s struggles, 22Cans may be in a more dire financial situation than its representatives let on. While the studio spokesperson attributed the layoff to redundant staff positions, they hinted at other factors.Legacystill has no set release date, and the studio may be running out of money. Even if the situation is not nearly that severe, it is likely in the back of management’s mind.
Either way, it’s bad news for whatever unfortunate staffers are on their way out. The good news is that 22Cans is not completely abandoning its axed employees. The studio is reportedly helping former staffers find new work. Who knows, some of them might even make their way toPlayground Games in time to work on the nextFable. That would certainly be an interesting turn of events.
Legacyis in development for PC and mobile.
