"Just the recurring game industry grinder of funding and project changes": Camelot Unchained studio reportedly lays off nearly half of its staff

The developers of Camelot Unchained, Unchained Entertainment, formerly City State Entertainment, have undergone a massive layoff, cutting down almost half of its workforce. According to the reports, the company has laid off over 40% of its workforce, with 24 out of 55 employees affected.

The former co-founder of the studio criticized it:

“Just the recurring game industry grinder of funding and project changes”

He also assured the affected dev members of Camelot Unchained that he would be trying to give some of them new opportunities.

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Camelot Unchained dev studio struck by the looming sword of massive layoffs

The former co-founder will try to give new opportunities to the affected staff members (Image via Unchained Entertainment)

The layoffs were first brought to light in a LinkedIn post by Andrew Meggs, a former co-founder of the studio who now works at Meta, according to his page on LinkedIn. Meggs expressed his disappointment over the situation, attributing the downsizing to the new trends in the gaming industry.

He also emphasized that the decision was not a reflection of the affected individuals’ talents or capabilities. Saying that staff members are so capable that he would have hired them if he had the chance:

“They're the kind of people I would hire again if I were at your studio today.”

This new layoff disaster follows a series of challenges for Unchained Entertainment, which has struggled to bring Camelot Unchained to market despite securing Kickstarter funding in 2013 and additional investments in 2022. The studio also launched a secondary project, Final Stand Ragnarok (FSR), but it has failed to gain traction, with player numbers peaking at just 42 concurrent users.

While the studio's founder, Mark Jacobs, assured investors last year that setbacks with FSR would not derail Camelot Unchained, the recent layoffs suggest quite a difficult situation on their hands.

This decision may affect the future of Camelot Unchained (Image via Unchained Entertainment)

Jacobs had previously stated that work on the MMORPG and its engine would continue regardless of FSR's performance. However, the significant reduction in staff raises questions about the studio's ability to meet its development goals.

As of now, no official statement has been issued by Unchained Entertainment regarding the layoffs or the status of its projects. Industry observers and fans are awaiting updates, which are expected in the near future. This situation serves as a great reminder of the volatility in the gaming industry, where funding challenges and shifting priorities can drastically impact even long-standing projects.