Sony has recently conducted layoffs affecting an undisclosed number of employees at its Visual Arts studio in San Diego and PS Studios Malaysia, as reported by Kotaku and confirmed by former employees on LinkedIn. According to Kotaku, the affected staff were notified earlier this week that their last day would be March 7. These layoffs included developers who had worked on various projects, including a recently canceled live-service game at Bend Studio. Visual Arts, known for providing art and technical support to PlayStation's first-party studios, has notably contributed to projects like The Last of Us Part 1 and 2 remasters.
LinkedIn posts from former employees, as identified by IGN, reveal that individuals from both Visual Arts and PS Studios Malaysia were impacted. One former Visual Arts employee specifically mentioned that the layoffs were a result of "multiple project cancellations."
This marks the second round of layoffs at Visual Arts within two years, following another wave in 2023 that also affected an unspecified number of employees. The current status of the studio, including the number of remaining staff and ongoing projects, remains unclear. IGN has sought comment from PlayStation regarding these developments.
These layoffs are part of a broader trend of job cuts and project cancellations within the gaming industry that began in 2023. That year saw over 10,000 game developers laid off, a number that increased to more than 14,000 in 2024. In 2025, the trend has persisted, though exact figures are less clear as many studios are not disclosing the full extent of the layoffs.
