It all began in the evening as several members of the company individually spoke on social networks, claiming their dismissal. A few hours later, Telltale issued a statement confirming this heavy decision: out of about 250 employees, only 25 will keep their jobs in the near future, in order to “respect the obligations of the company towards its board of directors and its partners”. For the moment, we do not know the nature of these obligations: if The Wolf Among Us 2 and Stranger Things seem to have been forgotten, the studio will complete its current game, The Walking Dead: The ultimate season.
Founded in 2004 by adventure game specialists from LucasArts, Telltale Games has made a name for itself in the general public since 2012 with the first seasons of The Walking Dead, after working on the Sam and Max franchise. Acquiring even more licenses (The Guardians of the Galaxy, Minecraft, Batman, Game of Thrones) and imposing a crunch dynamics to its 400 developers, Telltale had to question itself the past year with a serious restructuring, and the use of a more rational work model. “We ran out of time trying to get there,” says CEO Pete Hawley in the release.
We wish the best to the many that lost their jobs.
— Telltale Games (@telltalegames) September 21, 2018