Less than a day after the news that Take-Two Interactive would acquire Borderlands developer Gearbox Entertainment from the embattled Embracer Group, layoffs have already begun. In the hours since former Gearbox employees were made redundant, they've taken to Twitter, and while the total number of staff impacted remains hard to determine, it sounds significant.
Insider Gaming has reached out to Gearbox and new parent Take-Two Interactive for comment, but in the meantime, blindsided staff are telling the story for them. Former PR Manager Jennifer Locke posted: "Along with countless others, I've just been informed I've been laid off at Gearbox." Senior user research investigator Jewels Verne said, "I just lost my job", and Chris Harada, director of online engagement, wrote on LinkedIn, "After three incredible years at Gearbox, my journey with the company has concluded."
Embracer Group sold the Texas-based company for just $460 million, less than half what it paid for Gearbox in 2021, shelling out some $1.3 billion then to acquire the studio in the first place. That's an approximate loss of $840 million in just over two years, illustrating quite well the ridiculous state of the video game industry.