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NCSoft West laid off 20% of its staff on Wednesday and its CEO Jeff Anderson has parted ways with the company.
A company spokesman confirmed the layoffs in a statement, but declined to say how many people lost their jobs.
“We can confirm that we have laid off approximately 20% of our NC West workforce today, primarily affecting non-game development positions, as part of a global realignment with our company headquarters in Korea. Affected workers have been given severance and access to resources to assist with job placement.”
Asked if Anderson was still with the company, NCSoft West said, “Jeff has decided his time at NC is up and we appreciate his efforts with us.”
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This is not very helpful in finding out what happened. But we’re in the middle of a global economic recession, and many tech companies, as well as some game companies, are downsizing. This week, Electronic Arts announced that it will shut down its Industrial Toys game studio amid a shift in its mobile gaming strategy.
Anderson joined NCSoft West as CEO in July 2021. At the time, NCSoft West had more than 400 employees in studios in Aliso Viejo, Austin, Bellevue, London and San Mateo. Anderson had 30 years of leadership experience in the video game industry, having worked in an executive capacity at companies including Electronic Arts, Paramount Pictures, Turbine, Majesco and Hasbro.
Anderson had worked on titles such as Ultima Online as well as Dungeons & Dragons Online. Based in South Korea, NCSoft was founded in 2001 and has had big hits like Aion, Blade & Soul, Lineage and Guild Wars.
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