Through social media posts from former employees, it is evident that layoffs happened at Playtonic Games, the studio that developed Yooka-Laylee and Banjo-Kazooie. The number of employees impacted remains unclear.
Kev Bayliss, the creator of Donkey Kong (1994), Diddy Kong, Killer Instinct, Battletoads, Starfox Adventures, and many more characters, was one of the first to share the news about the layoff at Playtonic. Bayliss, who previously worked with Rare, wrote that he feels “extremely lucky” to still be employed.
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“I love working in the games industry, but it’s been a sad couple of weeks for us at Playtonic Ltd since we’ve lost some great talent and friends due to redundancies,” Bayliss wrote.
“I feel extremely lucky to still have a position doing what I enjoy, but also very lucky to have had the pleasure of meeting and working with the lovely people that we’ve had to say goodbye to.
“The only positive side to this is that there is now a bunch of amazingly skilled #gamedevs up for grabs to any Video Game companies & Animation Studios looking to take on new 3D Artists, Ui Artists, VFX Artists, Designers, Narrative Designers, Ui / UX Designers or expand their Production team.”
The layoff appears to have affected every part of the company, from production to UI art, VFX art, 3D art, game design, narrative design, and UI/UX design. The list of everyone impacted by the layoff was shared by Anni Valkama. However, it is hard to confirm if this is an exhaustive list.
Former Playtonic devs share their experience
Playtonic was founded in 2015 by the creative talent behind some of the most popular platform games, including Donkey Kong Country. The aim of the studio from the start was to bring fun games that everyone loves to play to new and old audiences across different platforms.
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The studio published its first game, Yooka-Laylee, in April 2017. Several former employees impacted by the layoff have posted about it on social media.
“Alongside several talented developers, my role as Senior Narrative Designer at Playtonic has been made redundant,” wrote senior game writer Rebecca. “I’m grateful for the time I’ve had at the studio and can’t wait for everyone to play Yooka-Replaylee.”
Audio designer Matt Griffin also shared a list of everyone impacted by the layoff at Playtonic, adding that, “It’s been a really tough time at Playtonic lately in a workplace that’s usually so much fun. Layoffs seem to be part of the industry now no matter where you are but that doesn’t make it any easier.”
VFX artist Joupin Ahmed shared a VFX reel they did for Yooka-Replaylee, showcasing their talent and soliciting the help of connections to land a new role.
Our hearts go out to everyone impacted by the layoffs, and we hope they find new opportunities soon. GameBaba Universe included a link to the profiles of everyone mentioned in this post so that prospective employers can easily reach out to them.
Update
Playtonic has now confirmed that layoffs happened in the company, saying, “This is one of those messages we never wanted to write”. See the full message posted on X below.
— Playtonic – CATTLE COUNTRY OUT NOW! (@PlaytonicGames) May 30, 2025
