Bulkhead, the UK-based studio known for The Turing Test, Battalion 1944, and Wardogs, is reportedly laying off staff.
Via LinkedIn, employees have written farewell posts during the past day, claiming that their jobs have been made redundant, and that they’ve been “affected by the most recent round of layoffs at Bulkhead.” At the same time, CEO Joe Brammer meanwhile, posted on LinkedIn about soliciting publisher interest in Wardogs during his upcoming Gamescom trip.
“If you’re a publisher looking for IP and to pick up a game 12-18 months from release.. Come and play it,” Brammer wrote. “Serious interest only.. Not got time for posturing.”
Among those reporting they’ve been laid off are quality assurance tester Michael Herbert, principal tools engineer Aäron Alluyn, lead concept artist Cristiana V., technical art director Neil Dorrington, and senior programmer Matthew Bramah-Taylor.
“I’m sad to say my time at Bulkhead, alongside so many talented developers, has come to a close,” Dorrington wrote. “Over the past year, I had the privilege of working alongside some truly amazing people who taught me so much. I’m excited to see what they do next.”
“I’ve been hit by another layoff in the games industry,” Herbert wrote. “It’s sadly a common story now, but I am determined to continue pursuing my dream job in this space.”
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Reposting Herbert’s message, Bulkhead’s production director James Tatum said that “Mike recently left Bulkhead due to a business decision unrelated to his performance.”
Bulkhead is seemingly gauging publisher interest for Wardogs
Bulkhead was acquired by Tencent-owned Splash Damage in December of 2022, months after the studio ended its previous partnership with Square Enix. The news came alongside the announcement of Transformers: Reactivate, which was introduced as “one of several original titles currently in development at the studios.”
Since then, Splash Damage confirmed in July 2024 that a “small number” of employees could be laid off. In January of this year, the studio canceled Transformers: Reactivate, and said that the decision left some employees “at risk of redundancy.” According to Bulkhead’s website, the sole game in development at the studio is the aforementioned game Wardogs, a first-person shooter featuring battlefields with up to 100 players.
Game Developer has contacted Bulkhead for clarification on the matter.