THQ Announces It’s Done With Layoffs
Claiming that they “have the appropriate number of teams and the appropriate number of people working on products”, THQ’s new president Jason Rubin announced that THQ will no longer be laying off any more staff. Over the past several months the company has closed off several studios, most notably their San Diego studio last week at the start of E3. That particular studio had been in charge of developing games with the UFC license, but after failing to break even on UFC Undisputed 3, THQ sold the franchise rights to EA.
However, while THQ may be done cutting jobs for the time being, that doesn’t mean that all of the current projects the company is working on will be spared, according to Rubin. “I have to go around and look at everything over the next few weeks, next month, and I have to then decide which of the titles are the titles we’re gonna focus on based on what I believe our future should be.” While it might be regrettable that some innovative games may be left on the cutting room floor, at least it’s better than a shut down studio and a longer unemployment line.
If THQ can stave off delistment from the NASDAQ stock exchange, the company stands a shot of making it. The fact that they’re finally done with cutting jobs and are now looking to strengthen what they have left should be a good sign for investors. Who knows, maybe in a few short years we’ll be talking about THQ at E3 not because of a studio being shut down, but rather because of a new game being showcased?
