Activision wasn’t happy with the amount of sales that Guitar Hero Live and its latest Skylanders game received. Therefore, the company will be laying off staff.
As reported by Game Informer, an Activision spokesperson said: “As announced on our earnings call, our games for core audiences did extremely well, but the casual audience has not yet emerged on next gen consoles.
So we are refocusing to better align with Activision’s long-term priorities because, as always, our strategy evolves to keep us ahead of a rapidly-changing industry. We are working with those impacted by the changes to offer outplacement services and support“.
Game Informer believes the Minneapolis, Minnesota location has been affected the most by the reported layoffs. There has been no word if other locations will be hit by layoffs as well, but Activision hasn’t denied the reports.
Activision made some questionable decisions as of late. For one, Guitar Hero Live came out around the same time as Rock Band 4 which cannibalized sales for both games. Not to mention, it may have been too early to revive the music genre.
As for Skylanders, Activision faced tough competition with Disney Infinity 3.0 and LEGO Dimensions. The Skylanders franchise failed to excite buyers last year as parents bought the other toys instead.
