German mobile studio Wooga has laid off 30 employees as part of its pivot to story-driven casual games.
After finding success with narrative-focused efforts like Pearl’s Peril and June’s Journey, the developer is convinced story-driven titles will shape the future of the casual market.
“In 2017, we focused even more keenly on narrative design with the release of June’s Journey. The game has already become one of our biggest titles and, like Pearl before it, attracted a sizeable following of loyal players,” reads a company blog.
“That’s why today we are announcing our goal to become the market leader in developing story-driven casual games, but doing so means enacting several organizational changes.”
Those changes will see the company ditch its current development model — which sees individual studios handle genre-specific development cycles — and reorganize around the life cycles of its games.
It means 30 employees have been let go, but Wooga claims it will allow those left to become experts in specific development phases and double-down on their key strengths.
“This decision was not one we took lightly but is necessary in order to fulfill our ambitions to become a market leader in this segment,” continued the studio. “Change is always difficult and it is sad to see friends go. We will do our best to support the employees affected.”