God of War developer Sony Santa Monica Studio announced a round of lay-offs yesterday, and the cancellation of a new IP. Braid and The Witness creator Jonathan Blow has taken to Twitter to call out the culling of new ideas.
Former lead level designer Jonathan Hawkin took to Twitter to discuss the move.
He wrote, “Yesterday, I was laid off. It was a good 10 year run & I got to make three 90+ games. I lived the dream & got to accomplish all of my goals. Except one… making something out of nothing & creating a new AAA IP.
“The saddest part of waking up today is I no longer get to work with my family. Secondly, the pain that I feel for my friends who have lost their jobs. The saddest & most important part is the game I was creating for the player that will never be played. I’m sorry that I’ve failed you.”
The Witness creator Jon Blow then voiced his own concerns on Twitter. “Game publishers like to talk about how new IPs are scary and risky and usually not worth it,” he began, “but this is clearly poor thinking, because every single megablockbuster franchise, that Mr. Business Suit Guy would rather put the money toward, was once a new IP.
“God of War was once a new IP. Call of Duty was once a new IP. etc, it is so obvious, how does Mr. Business Suit not see this? Maybe next time I meet Mr. Business Suit I will ask him to name an Old IP that was not once a New IP.”
