Marvel Rivals director and key devs laid off despite massive success

NetEase Games has laid off key staff members, including the game director of the incredibly successful hero-shooter title, Marvel Rivals. The game was launched in December 2024 and saw massive success, as the gameplay resonated with many and the developers actively listened to the community, making key improvements. Today, February 18, 2025, the game director, Thadeus Sasser posted on LinkedIn that he and his team have been let go by NetEase.

Despite being extremely popular, this decision by the higher-ups has come as a shock to the development team and the community alike. NetEase Games has yet to release an official statement regarding the decision.

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NetEase has laid off key staff members from the Marvel Rivals development team

NetEase laid off key development figures behind the game's success (Image via NetEase Games)

The gaming industry has been in a rather odd state recently with several studios reducing their workforce or being forced to shut down altogether. As the community prepares for the second half of Marvel Rivals Season 1, unexpected news has come knocking.

Thadeus Sasser, the game director of the immensely popular and beloved hero-shooter has taken to LinkedIn to announce that he and several key staff members have been laid off.

The developers express their disappointment (Image via LinkedIn)

Sasser stated the following in his LinkedIn post:

"This is such a weird industry... My stellar, talented team just helped deliver an incredibly successful new franchise in Marvel Rivals for NetEase Games... and were just laid off!"

Besides Sasser, technical designer Garry McGee, level designer Jack Burrows, and some other talented developers were laid off by NetEase Games. Burrows, in his post, expressed disappointment over the news:

"Just couldn't dodge that big boot I guess, no matter how big the success of the gig."

Despite being a massive success and earning praise for both the map and gameplay designs that the developers worked hard on for years, it currently appears no one in the gaming industry is indispensable. Needless to say, the situation was unexpected, as despite being a hit, these key members were unable to retain their jobs.