> As reported last night, the job cuts within Marvel Rivals' western-based development team follow a recent pattern by NetEase, which has made broader reconsiderations to its overseas investments and studios.
> In November of last year, Mac Walters - the veteran writer and producer who worked on Mass Effect for almost two decades - announced a "pause" in operations at his NetEase-backed AAA game studio, Worlds Untold. Then, last month, Jar of Sparks - the Seattle-based "AAA" studio established by Halo Infinite head of design Jerry Hook back in 2022 - halted work its currently-unannounced first title as it searched for a new publishing partner, stating it's looking to "find all of our team new homes" as a result.
> More recently, the NetEase-backed and Sweden-based developer Liquid Swords announced an unspecified number of layoffs, before it had even released its first game.
Maybe one day westerners will realize the stove is hot and learn to stop working with Chinese companies lest they get burned.
> In November of last year, Mac Walters - the veteran writer and producer who worked on Mass Effect for almost two decades - announced a "pause" in operations at his NetEase-backed AAA game studio, Worlds Untold. Then, last month, Jar of Sparks - the Seattle-based "AAA" studio established by Halo Infinite head of design Jerry Hook back in 2022 - halted work its currently-unannounced first title as it searched for a new publishing partner, stating it's looking to "find all of our team new homes" as a result.
> More recently, the NetEase-backed and Sweden-based developer Liquid Swords announced an unspecified number of layoffs, before it had even released its first game.
Maybe one day westerners will realize the stove is hot and learn to stop working with Chinese companies lest they get burned.