Yet another game developer has been hit by layoffs. This time, it's Digital Extremes, best known for developing the popular free-to-play sci-fi action game Warframe. The company has confirmed that it will be shutting down its game publishing arm, which released the online action-RPG game Wayfinder from developer Airship Syndicate a few months ago in early access for the PC and PlayStation 4 and 5 console platforms.
PC Gamer received a statement from a Digital Extremes spokesperson on the situation:
We can confirm we have made the difficult decision to cease operations of our external projects division. We have had to say goodbye to a number of hardworking and highly valuable team members as a result and we're working with Airship to transition full control of Wayfinder to them in the coming months.
There's no word from Digital Extremes on exactly how many people at the developer were affected by the layoffs. The official Wayfinder site currently makes no mention of any plans for Airship to gain full control of the game.
Airship Syndicate was formed by the founders of Vigil Games, the creators of the Darksiders game series. It has released Battle Chasers: Nightwar, and Darksiders Genesis , both for THQ Nordic, and then worked with Riot Games on Ruined King: A League of Legends Story which was released in 2021.
Warframe continues to be a popular free-to-play title, and Digital Extremes is working on mobile versions of the game that are scheduled to launch in 2024. It's also working on a new free-to-play action game, the fantasy-themed Soulframe, that currently does not have a release date.
This is just the latest example of major layoffs in the video game industry. In just the last few weeks, mass layoffs have been announced at major game developers like Bungie, Epic Games, Telltale Games and more.
