{
  "id": 16081268,
  "title": "Splash Damage acquired this studio just 3 months after laying off a bunch of people—now it's laying them off, too",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/22/splash-damage-acquired-this-studio-just-3-months-after-laying-off-a",
  "topic": "tech",
  "section": "Tech",
  "published": "2026-10-22T17:34:04.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "PC Gamer",
    "slug": "pc-gamer",
    "url": "https://www.pcgamer.com/gaming-industry/splash-damage-acquired-this-studio-just-3-months-after-laying-off-a-bunch-of-people-now-its-laying-them-off-too/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Gamepires, developer of the open-world survival game Scum, has announced layoffs, putting its team out of work. This comes just three months after Splash Damage, the studio that acquired Gamepires, laid off a significant number of employees. Splash Damage itself had previously laid off workers two months ago, before being acquired by private equity investors. The acquisition of Gamepires was made only eight months prior to these layoffs, raising questions about the motivations behind the deals. Despite Splash Damage's claim that the acquisition brings stability and a solid foundation for future growth, the rapid succession of layoffs raises concerns about the sustainability of the situation.",
  "summary": "An undisclosed number of employees have been let go from the studio behind survival game Scum.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}