Several developers have announced that they have been laid off from PlayStation’s Visual Arts group.
Among them, former senior level designer Daniel Bellemere wrote: ”Unfortunately, following a wave of layoffs last week was my last at PlayStation. While this is certainly not the news I was hoping for, I’m grateful to have had a chance to work amongst extremely talented colleagues on incredible projects and I’m leaving with good memories of my time there.”
Bellemere is based in San Diego, and was working on an unannounced project. It’s unclear if he was based at PlayStation’s Visual Arts Group, or Sony San Diego.
The San Diego-based Visual Arts Service Group was founded in 2007 with the goal of growing some of PlayStation’s biggest franchises.
Visual Arts Service Group was recently brought to prominence for its work on The Last of Us Part 1, work that reportedly saw the game be brought in-house at the original studio Naughty Dog to finish the project.
Another former employee, Matt Barney, wrote: “Goodbye PlayStation / Sony Interactive Entertainment, it’s been real!
For the past few months, I knew this layoff wave was coming
I love PlayStation & I always will… I mean, I stayed when I had the chance to leave, so obviously!
Other developers have posted on social media about their contracts with PlayStation’s Visual Arts Group ending, but it’s unclear if this was the natural conclusion of the contract term, or a layoff.
Rigging artist Sean Teo, who worked on The Last of Us Part 1, wrote on his LinkedIn page: “Hey everyone, my contract at PlayStation Visual Arts has unfortunately come to an end. I am currently looking for a new role and I am flexible with working on video games, cinematic films, and commercial work.”