LogInThe sharp scythe of layoffs continues to devastate the game development industry, making no exceptions, this time cutting its way through PLAION, the parent company of Kingdom Come: Deliverance's developer Warhorse and publisher Deep Silver, as well as a subsidiary of Embracer Group – the studio that has fired more than 1,400 employees over the past few years.
Warhorse
The news comes from PLAION's Communication Manager, Alessandra Minuz, who shared in her recent LinkedIn post that the company is currently undergoing a wave of job cuts. As revealed by Alessandra, she is set to be laid off by April, implying that all affected employees will be let go within the next week and a half.
It is currently unclear whether only PLAION's Milan office, where Alessandra is based, was impacted, or how many employees are facing layoffs. According to the company, PLAION employs around 2,200 people, with 30-40 working in Milan. We've reached out to the studio to get details on how many positions will be cut, so stay tuned for updates.
Coincidentally, around the same time Alessandra revealed the layoffs, Circana's Mat Piscatella shared that, in terms of profits, Kingdom Come: Deliverance II's first-month sales in February 2025 were more than five times higher than those the original Kingdom Come: Deliverance's achieved during its debut in February 2018.
With such financial success and KCD2 receiving high praise from the majority of the gaming community, the layoffs at PLAION can indeed raise some eyebrows, leading one to wonder if this is part of yet another "restructuring" at Embracer, which had previously reported a 35% drop in net sales for PC/console games from April to December 2024, compared to the same period in 2023.
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