Renowned and cult-adored developer, Obsidian Entertainment, have been forced to lay off a number of employees.
This news comes from a variety of sources which include a tweet from studio animator, Andre Nguyen, who twote: “Fellow Obsidianites who were laid off today… I was lucky, but I’ve been on the other end of that. Your talents will take you far!”
A thread on the official Obsidian forum has fans compiling a rather melancholy list of employees who were let go that reads not unlike a memorial wall with the occasional epitaph.
One of those laid off is Frank Kowalkowski, lead programmer of critically acclaimed post-apocalyptic RPG, Fallout: New Vegas and employee of eight years.
The number of employees let go is, with fans using the marvel that is LinkedIn, estimated to be around 30 and includes folk from every discipline, including some of those working on Obsidian’s current project, the South Park RPG.
This turn of events has resulted in the termination of North Carolina, a game that was slated for the Xbox and to be published by Microsoft. Project lead, Jason Fader, employee of 3-and-a-half years, was also let go.
Normally upbeat and optimistic CEO, Feargus Urquhart was reportedly “choked up” while informing staff of the cancellation of North Carolina. No doubt the lay-offs didn’t help his mood.
This news brings back heart-breaking memories of the fall of Troika. One has to wonder if RPG legend, Tim Cain hasn’t brought his notoriously foul luck with him after Obsidian announced that he had become a permanent employee only a few weeks ago.
When asked about the Fallout: New Vegas payout being a financial boost for Obsidian, Chris Avellone revealed that the title was a straight payment – and a bonus was dependant on a Metacritic score of 85…
Ouch.
Source: Gematsu, Obsidian forums, Twitter
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