On February 18, NetEase laid off Marvel Rivals development team members, including game director Thaddeus Sasser, just two months after its incredibly successful launch. The hero shooter has been such a runaway success that the news blindsided people across the video game industry. According to a statement the company issued to Game File, NetEase made these cuts “for organizational reasons and to optimize development efficiency for the game.” The layoffs specifically affected the support team based in Seattle while the “core” Guangzhou-based team “remains fully committed to delivering an exceptional experience.”
“We are investing more, not less, into the evolution and growth of this game,” the statement reads. “We’re excited to deliver new super hero characters, maps, features, and content to ensure an engaging live service experience for our worldwide player base.”
NetEase can say Marvel Rivals will be fine with these cuts, but the industry is still reeling from the layoffs, especially given how well the shooter has done in a volatile live-service market. The free-to-play game accumulated over 20 million players in its first month, and is estimated to have brought in over $136 million in revenue in that time. Several industry members and pundits have expressed disbelief at how a game could be doing so well while the employment of the people who helped make it a success remains so precarious.
One notable aspect of this situation is that NetEase, a China-based company, is broadly pulling out of overseas development. For example, in 2024, the company pulled its funding for Worlds Untold, a Vancouver-based studio led by ex-BioWare director Mac Walters, causing the studio to “pause” its operations. The Marvel Rivals layoffs may be part of a larger trend in NetEase’s business plans, but it’s still proof that even a runaway success isn’t enough to save you from the whims of a corporation.
If NetEase is looking to untether itself from overseas development, it raises questions about the future of several companies under the corporation’s umbrella. NetEase’s overseas investments include studios like Bulletfarm, led by ex-Call of Duty developer David Vonderhaar, and Bad Brain Game Studios which is made up of ex-Ubisoft devs. The video game industry is in a state of unprecedented turnover right now, with thousands of people having lost their jobs in the past year. The teams behind successful games and flops alike are getting hit with layoffs, so what exactly is a developer to do?
Marvel Rivals is approaching its mid-season update on Friday, February 21, which will add the Human Torch and the Thing to the roster. The hero shooter may keep trucking along, but the game’s success story now has a cloud hanging over it just two months into its life.