Behavior Interactive has announced its second wave of layoffs in 2024. The company that makes Dead by Daylight claims it will lay off up to 95 workers. Seventy of them are based in Montreal, the company’s hometown. The firm also operates studios in Toronto, Seattle, the United Kingdom, and the Netherlands. It already cut 45 jobs in January 2024.
According to a press statement, behavior has grown from 575 to 1,300 employees in the last five years. This growth is due to the success of Dead by Daylight and its service business. The company also works with industry leaders to create high-quality games.
According to the company, the layoffs will not affect the service business or database development. This article will explain more about the layoffs at Behavior Interactive.
Behavior Interactive fired 45 employees
The gaming business is now in crisis! The expected number of video game layoffs this year is 10,300, nearing the 2023 total of roughly 10,500.
Behavior Interactive was established in 1992. It is Canada’s largest independent game developer and publisher. Over the last three decades, Behavior has built an image as one of gaming’s most trusted service providers. The company also houses Dead by Daylight, a genre-defining franchise that has attracted over 60 million players since its 2016 launch.
In January 2024, Behavior Interactive revealed layoffs, claiming they comprised less than 3% of the company’s jobs. Also, the business said that it only affected Montreal employees.
A representative for the studio stated,
“Recently, shifting market conditions forced changing the scope of various behavior initiatives. In such instances, we always prefer to reassign staff to other projects. Sadly, this choice is not always available to us. These losses totaled less than 3% of our overall workforce.”
According to sources, layoffs at the Dead by Daylight studio began in December, with this particular wave occurring between January 9 and 11. It only affected Behaviour’s Montreal staff across multiple divisions.
According to the company’s LinkedIn site, Behavior Interactive has 1,300 employees worldwide. Last year, Behaviour Interactive acquired SockMonkey Studios (February 2023) and Codeglue (August). In July, it established a new UK studio in Truro, Cornwall.
Second wave of Layoffs
Behavior Interactive has announced that it will lay off around 95 people now. Of the 95 people affected, 70 work at the studio’s Montreal, Canada, location.
As for why, the business cites restructuring as it follows a clear goal focused on “multiple strategic changes.” According to the company, these layoffs will not impact its service business or the development of Dead by Daylight.
According to a press release:
“Behavior will make multiple strategic changes to its organization. It includes improving the distinction between its product, production, business development, and marketing resources. This is to seek this clarified vision.”
The vision includes:
- lead in horror,
- lead in service, and
- explore the possibilities of location-based entertainment.
“The corporation will lay off up to 95 workers due to these changes, 70 of whom are located in Montreal. Each of these individuals made significant changes to their behavior. They will receive full support from the organization as they pursue the next career phase, ” per the press release.
Aside from Dead by Daylight development, Behaviour assists The Quarry developer “Supermassive Games” with the casting of Frank Stone. It is a single-player horror game set in the Dead by Daylight universe.
These layoffs come just a few months after the company laid off about 45 individuals at the same Montreal office in January. Thus, they join an ever-expanding list of poor layoffs and studio closures for 2024.
Reasons for the layoffs
Lately, there has also been a bit of a spending binge in behavior. It recently bought Fly Studio in Montreal. In 2023, the business purchased SockMoney Studios and Codeglue, opening a new studio in Cornwall. In 2022, Behaviour bought Midwinter Entertainment and launched a new Toronto office.
According to Behavior, the layoffs will not influence Dead by Daylight development. On June 3, 2024, Dead by Daylight received its official Dungeons & Dragons chapter.
This follows an ongoing trend of industry layoffs that has been steady for almost two years. This trend resulted in over 10,000 individuals losing their employment in 2023 and included another 10,000 layoffs in just the first half of 2024.
Developers claim the causes are much more varied and complex. They also say that it has a severe and unpleasant effect on people despite the fact that pandemic overspending is mostly to blame.
Conclusion
On June 4, 2024, Behavior Interactive announced a series of significant structural changes. These changes build on the company’s historical strengths to create a bold vision for its long-term success.
It claims the high degree of competition in the gaming market has forced it to focus on its core capabilities, resulting in layoffs as part of the restructuring process.
The company will focus on horror games and collaborate with its development partners. It also says it will “explore the potentials of location-based entertainment” but doesn’t specify what that means.