It appears that Final Strike Games has been hit by layoffs. After that, a rumor surfaced that Sony had canceled an unannounced game that was in development at the indie studio.
Rocket Arena
On May 10, Twitter user Timur222, who usually posts insides and various findings related to the games industry, claimed Final Strike Games is no longer working on its upcoming sci-fi shooter.
The information about PlayStation canceling the project came from a developer who was recently laid off from the studio. Although there is no official confirmation of this, the job cuts at Final Strike Games definitely took place.
source: Developed who was laid off the from the studio
The company had a 40% reduction of headcount— Timur222 (@bogorad222) May 10, 2023
Over the last 24 hours, several Final Strike employees shared posts on LinkedIn about losing their jobs. According to these messages, the layoffs affected software engineers, artists, producers, recruiters, and QA testers.
Final Strike Games hasn’t commented on the reports. According to its official website, the studio employed over 85 people, but the scale of the layoffs remains unclear. The company’s former director of art management noted that “the cuts were deep.”
The layoffs could be a result of a AAA game being allegedly canceled by PlayStation. However, the Final Strike website still contains information about an “unannounced AAA PvP shooter in development for PC/console.”
Although the project’s concept and genre is in line with Sony’s plans to release 10 new live service titles by March 2026, the company has never officially announced its partnership with Final Strike Games.
Founded in 2016, Final Strike is an independent studio based in the US and Canada. Its debut game, online 3v3 third-person shooter Rocket Arena, came out in 2016 and was published by Electronic Arts. Since then, the team has worked on new content for this title and started providing live service support services for Fortnite in 2021.
On May 5, just days before the job cuts, Final Strike Games announced it was moving to a new office, adding that it will continue to “deliver top-notch games and experiences in our new home.”