More industry cuts

Game developers have unfortunately laid off in Microsoft’s Vancouver studios they announced. They haven’t fully disclosed the numbers but insist that the studio is still open for business. Two titles that were in development by the Canadian studio are said to have been cancelled.

In a statement to Kotaku, Microsoft said:

Microsoft Studios is always evaluating its portfolio of products to determine what is best for gamers, families and the company, and this decision was the result of the natural ebb and flow of our portfolio management. Many factors were considered in the difficult decision to stop development on “Microsoft Flight” and “Project Columbia,” but we feel it will help us better align with our long-term goals and development plans. For “Microsoft Flight,” we will continue to support the community that has embraced the title and the game will still be available to download for free at http://www.microsoft.com/games/flight/.

It is unsure if Project Columbia was the Kinect only First Person Shooting game the site was developing but it seems that whatever they layoffs refer to, they are still hiring for people to join the team. According to the MGS- Vancouver studio website, there are numerous job postings for engineers in various roles.

However it is expected that the three jobs on offer are far outweighed by the layoffs announced today and this is bad news for the city as it is the third studio to lose staff this year. Rockstar have moved to Toronto and Capcom last week announced 20 jobs were to go from their residence in the city.