Just Cause creator’s new studio announces ‘incredibly difficult’ layoffs while still working on its first game

It just wouldn’t be a day in the games industry without some dispiriting news about layoffs, would it? This time the company cutting back on staff is Liquid Swords, the studio founded by Christofer Sundberg, formerly Chief Creative Officer at Avalanche Studios and creator of the Just Cause series.

In a statement (via Game Developer), Sundberg explained that Liquid Swords was founded in 2020 with the intent “to build a studio redefining game development with a small, expert-driven team and a sustainable work model.” Yet while he claims the company achieved “much” of this goal, “shifting market conditions prevented us from succeeding in our timeframe.” Consequently, Liquid Swords has made the “incredibly difficult” decision to “part ways with talented individuals who have been instrumental in our journey.”

If you aren’t familiar with Liquid Swords, that’s likely because the studio’s first game is still in development. At the time the studio’s creation was announced, it explained it would be “focused on open world action, explosions, shareable experiences and memorable game moments”. Its website pronounces the studio “prioritises creativity over crunch”, and that its current project is a “narrative-driven, open-world, hardboiled AAA revenge story” made in Unreal Engine 5. This project will apparently continue despite the layoffs, with Sundberg stating it will remain “committed to our vision and will continue to work on our IP.”

While layoffs are sadly rife in the games industry at present, the downsizing of Liquid Swords is a little surprising. In 2022, NetEase games invested an undisclosed amount into the studio, with Liquid Swords planning to build up its studio to 100 employees by early 2024.

Christofer Sundberg spent more than a decade with Avalanche before founding Liquid Swords, working on the Just Cause games as well as 2015’s underrated Mad Max tie-in. Last year, Sundberg came out swinging in Mad Max’s defence after the game was criticised by the series’ creator George Miller, describing Miller’s comments as “complete arrogance” and stating Warner Bros “did everything they could they could to make this a complete linear game after having signed up with a developer of open world games.” Moreover, he claimed Avalanche was “forced to release” the game on the same day as Metal Gear Solid 5: The Phantom Pain and that Warner Bros “blamed us for the bad sales and canceled a bunch of awesome DLC.”