If you follow video game news and are a player of Marvel Rivals, you would have noticed that the game has been featured prominently due to “significant layoffs at NetEase Games,” which is the publisher and studio behind the title. NetEase is a prominent player in China’s video game industry, based in Hangzhou, a city situated 175 km south of Shanghai. While it may not be as large as Tencent, it holds significant influence within the sector, especially given its growing importance in recent years for Western and Japanese studios seeking entry into the Chinese market.
Recently, notable news emerged following LinkedIn posts by developers at NetEase’s US branch, announcing that their entire team had been laid off simultaneously. Among those thanked was Thaddeus Sasser, a seasoned video game professional with experience on titles such as Call of Duty, Battlefield, and Ghost Recon, who served as the ‘game director’ for Marvel Rivals. In his LinkedIn post, Sasser detailed that his team’s layoffs occurred despite the success of the Marvel Rivals game.
It is an unusual situation… My talented and exceptional team recently contributed to the creation of an incredibly successful new franchise for NetEase Games called Marvel Rivals, only to be laid off subsequently.
Given the statements made, it is understandable for individuals to feel outraged and to seek justice when a game such as Marvel Rivals claims an audience of over 40 million players. This announcement quickly became a trending topic within the gaming industry, receiving extensive media coverage that highlighted the shock of seeing an entire team dismissed despite the game’s notable success. Reports soon surfaced indicating that “NetEase is replacing the American project team with a Chinese team to handle maintenance post-launch, given the game’s exceptional performance.” For many observers, NetEase’s decision appears political and even anti-American, as it exclusively impacted the US office of the game.
In the hours following these LinkedIn posts and sensational headlines, various details began to be clarified, with journalists such as Nick Calandra or Daniel Ahmad, Head of Research and Analysis at Niko Partners, conducting investigations to understand the true nature of the situation. Beyond articles that reacted emotionally by merely repeating the LinkedIn posts of those involved without further inquiry, it has become clear that there is no large-scale layoff and that only around six developers have been affected. This situation is far from causing widespread panic within a major American studio, as it pertains to just six individuals.
It is always regrettable when game developers lose their jobs, especially when it happens suddenly and particularly when the game is a hit, but it’s important to understand that the video game industry operates this way and has for a long time. Essentially, when a studio embarks on developing a game, they hire dozens or even hundreds of people for a defined period, the duration of the game’s development. Once the game is completed and delivered, there’s no longer a need for such a large team of developers, especially if there isn’t another project in progress. If another game is being produced, everything depends on its stage of development. Whether it’s at the writing or prototyping phase, or full production, a studio may not require a complete team, especially considering that games take years to develop. Each country has its own hiring methods; it could be short-term contracts, temporary contracts (CDD), or permanent contracts (CDI), but no one is immune from being let go once the game is finished, whether it’s a success or not. Of course, it’s shocking when a game is successful, but once completed and with no follow-up plans, developers are dismissed; this is how the video game industry functions.
In a discussion regarding the Marvel Rivals game series, where all creative work has been finalized and only follow-up tasks remain, I address Thaddeus Sasser’s post as Game Director, noting his careful choice of words. From these statements, it is clear that one might incorrectly assume that the entire creative effort behind Marvel Rivals stems solely from six American developers, which is inaccurate. In VideoGamer’s November 2024 podcast, Thaddeus Sasser himself clarified the distinction between the roles of Game Director and Creative Director, emphasizing that Guangyun Chen was the primary creative driving force behind Marvel Rivals, while his own role centered on “game labor and budgets.” Consequently, it appears that despite potential impacts from Sasser’s departure on production aspects, players are unlikely to be affected due to Guangyun Chen’s central role as the true creative power behind Marvel Rivals. Therefore, NetEase did not remove American creatives from the game for Chinese team follow-up, given that since Sasser’s departure, Guangyun Chen has been the actual driving creative force.
This situation could be viewed as a political conflict between the United States and China, particularly considering the potential for increased tensions if former President Trump were to seek another term, with his aim being to wage an aggressive economic war against China. Regarding this issue, NetEase has officially stated that the layoffs are solely related to restructuring their design team, which supported the creative team based in China. It is worth noting that NetEase employs approximately 30,000 people globally across various locations including China, Canada, Japan, England, Singapore, and France, with a notable acquisition being Quantic Dream, David Cage’s studio, in 2022. While laying off six employees is unfortunate, especially given the success of Marvel Rivals, these individuals were likely hired specifically for this project and not retained beyond its completion—a common practice within the industry.
It is understandably sad to hear about job losses, but it’s important to maintain a level-headed approach and avoid calls for boycotts. The video game industry has always operated in this manner, and there is little chance of that changing. However, headlines such as “NetEase lays off entire US branch, including Marvel Rivals game director” would naturally attract more attention than “NetEase lays off six developers who were part of the support team,” which explains why the situation was initially exaggerated.
