Tales of Kenzera: Zau Developer Surgent Studios Hit With Layoffs - News

by William D'Angelo , posted on 02 July 2024 / 1,517 Views

Tales of Kenzera: Zau developer Surgent has been hit with an unknown number of layoffs.

This is according to multiple employees (via Game Developer) who have been posting on LinkedIn they have been laid off.

"The chapter entitled 'Pete Works At Surgent Studios' is coming to a close at the end of the month," said level designer Pete Brisbourne.

Technical artist Jordan Smee on LinkedIn stated, "Well, it looks like I'm joining all the people affected by industry layoffs this year, and I am now seeking Technical Art and Environment Art positions."

Another employee on Bluesky stated, "Well, I’ve officially been laid off, as expected."

Tales of Kenzera: Zau released for the PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, Nintendo Switch and PC via Steam and Epic Games Store on April 23.

A life-long and avid gamer, William D'Angelo was first introduced to VGChartz in 2007. After years of supporting the site, he was brought on in 2010 as a junior analyst, working his way up to lead analyst in 2012 and taking over the hardware estimates in 2017. He has expanded his involvement in the gaming community by producing content on his own YouTube channel and Twitch channel. You can contact the author on Twitter @TrunksWD.

5 Comments

Lukas85 (on 03 July 2024)

The game bombed hard, like megahard, also sweet baby touch of death so sadly im not surprised by this news.

coolbeans Lukas85 (on 03 July 2024)

It's weird too b/c nothing in the game's story reeks of their involvement compared to something like Spider-Man 2. Since it was just tying old myths and legends with a Bantu skin, why did they need any sensitivity reader consultation?

curl-6 (on 02 July 2024)

I wonder if the game underperformed or if it's just "we finished a project so let's get rid of a bunch of folks we don't currently need".
Either way, hope everyone lands on their feet.

KLXVER curl-6 (on 02 July 2024)

It is one of the games on the Baby Inc list or whatever its called. Lots of people boycotted it I think.

coolbeans curl-6 (on 03 July 2024)

I mean... these don't strike me as the type of roles you'd flush out willy-nilly. If its poor Steam analytics are anything to go by, it most likely underperformed.