Another one bites the dust
In this economy, everyone is worried about their job security. No one knows when their company may file bankruptcy or go on another wave of layoffs.
But not me. No. For some odd reason, I felt secure. I felt like my job would be there when I needed it. When an analyst said there was a 50/50 chance that THQ (our parent company) would go under, I laughed. Not this company, baby.
Well I ain't laughin' no mo'.
For those who keep up with game industry news: (blurbs from the Kotaku article released on 3/17/2009)
"Publisher THQ announced in February that it would be cutting back substantially, axing jobs and shuttering studios after losing $191.8 million last quarter."
"California based Heavy Iron in Los Angeles and Incinerator in Carlsbad were let go by the publisher today, part of THQ's previously announced cutbacks. Both studios were responsible for creating titles based on Pixar properties, including The Incredibles and Wall E from Heavy Iron and Cars from Incinerator Studios."
"THQ reps call the actions "unfortunate but were necessitated by the difficult economic environment." It has plans to layoff nearly 600 employees or about 24% of its total workforce, in order to cut costs by $220 million in its fiscal 2010."
I work for Heavy Iron Studios mentioned in the article. We're one of the companies that is being let go and becoming an independant entity. During the split, there will inevitably be down-sizing. So for the next few months, I'll be seeing if that proverbial pink slip comes to my desk. In light of this, I am thankful of what I have. I currently have a job, and a decent shot at keeping it. It could have been worse...we could have been like Big Huge Games. If they do not find a buyer in the next 60 days (well, 59 now), the studio will close down.
But I, like many others around me in this world, now live day-to-day, wondering if this job will be around in 6 months.
For full articles on the coverage:
Kotaku Article
Gamasutra Article
CrispyGamer Article
How has this recession affected you?
But not me. No. For some odd reason, I felt secure. I felt like my job would be there when I needed it. When an analyst said there was a 50/50 chance that THQ (our parent company) would go under, I laughed. Not this company, baby.
Well I ain't laughin' no mo'.
For those who keep up with game industry news: (blurbs from the Kotaku article released on 3/17/2009)
"Publisher THQ announced in February that it would be cutting back substantially, axing jobs and shuttering studios after losing $191.8 million last quarter."
"California based Heavy Iron in Los Angeles and Incinerator in Carlsbad were let go by the publisher today, part of THQ's previously announced cutbacks. Both studios were responsible for creating titles based on Pixar properties, including The Incredibles and Wall E from Heavy Iron and Cars from Incinerator Studios."
"THQ reps call the actions "unfortunate but were necessitated by the difficult economic environment." It has plans to layoff nearly 600 employees or about 24% of its total workforce, in order to cut costs by $220 million in its fiscal 2010."
I work for Heavy Iron Studios mentioned in the article. We're one of the companies that is being let go and becoming an independant entity. During the split, there will inevitably be down-sizing. So for the next few months, I'll be seeing if that proverbial pink slip comes to my desk. In light of this, I am thankful of what I have. I currently have a job, and a decent shot at keeping it. It could have been worse...we could have been like Big Huge Games. If they do not find a buyer in the next 60 days (well, 59 now), the studio will close down.
But I, like many others around me in this world, now live day-to-day, wondering if this job will be around in 6 months.
For full articles on the coverage:
Kotaku Article
Gamasutra Article
CrispyGamer Article
How has this recession affected you?