The internet behemoth, which owns the gaming streaming website Twitch, is also closing down its own channel on the platform, which had struggled to acquire popularity. These are the most recent job losses in the gaming business in 2023, which has had approximately 6,500 job losses. Even though this year saw the release of successful games from franchises such as Zelda, Spider-Man, and Mario, reports Technology News UK.
Fortnite creator Epic Games, Assassin’s Creed developer Ubisoft Montreal, and Pokemon Go creator Niantic have all announced layoffs in the past six months. Amazon Games was created in 2012 initially to create mobile games, but it has subsequently expanded into larger titles such as the online games New World and Lost Ark. In 2022, the company revealed that it would release a new single-player game based on the legendary franchise Tomb Raider, and in May, it said that it was producing a Lord of the Rings game. In an email to employees obtained by the BBC, Amazon stated that the layoffs were part of a reorganisation exercise.
“After our initial restructuring in April, it became obvious that we needed to focus our resources even more on the areas expanding with the highest potential to drive our business forward,” Amazon Games vice president Christoph Hartmann wrote.
However, he also stated that the company was looking for other openings in its gaming sector. It comes amid a wave of layoffs across the tech industry in 2023, with Amazon alone laying off over 25,000 workers.
