Hunting ground developers announce layoffs

Important takeaways

IllFonic, developer of Predator: Hunting Grounds, announced layoffs due to the ongoing impact on the industry.
CEO and co-founder Charles Brungardt confirmed that cuts had been made to the studio's team as it “realigned to a refined strategy.”
Support for the affected team members poured in on social media, highlighting appreciation for their projects and talents.

The developer behind it Predator: Hunting Grounds IllFonic has announced a wave of layoffs within the studio, an unfortunate repeat of what has plagued several sectors of the games industry recently. Ubisoft, NetherRealm Studios, and Take-Two Interactive, to name a few, all suffered layoffs in 2024, and now IllFonic, the studio behind several asymmetric and multiplayer games, is set to follow suit.

IllFonic is an American-based developer with offices in Colorado, Washington and Texas, and the studio was founded by Charles Brungardt, Kedhrin Gonzales and Raphael Saadiq in 2007. IllFonic's popular asymmetric horror Friday the 13th: The Game recently shut down its servers on October 31st, and horror fans are hoping that another project featuring serial killer Jason Voorhees will emerge in the future that meets the standards of 2017 games.

killer clown from outer space the game's key art

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Announced on the developer's Twitter account, IllFonics CEO and co-founder Charles Brungardt confirmed that the developer had accepted the “harsh reality that the state of the industry has affected us.” The statement described cuts to the studio's team as it “realigned to a refined strategy.” Fate developer Bungie laid off 200 people this year to reevaluate its development efforts, a process reflected in IllFonic's refined strategy moves. Brungardt admitted it was with “the heaviest of hearts” to deliver the news and encouraged other companies to take advantage of the talents of the affected team members for other positions in the industry. The CEO did not confirm the number of roles affected in the office, but Senior Social Media and Community Manager Mike Robles was confirmed to be among them.

Predator: Hunting Grounds developer IllFonic announces layoffs

The gaming industry has endured mass layoffs in 2024, including Riot Games' recent downsizing League of Legends developers, but support for the IllFonic team came in abundance via social media. Industry professionals and fans of the developer showed support for all concerned and took the opportunity to send their appreciation for the projects they were involved in, such as Ghostbusters: Spirits Unleashed. Additionally, Robles added in a personal Twitter post that the layoffs came as a shock to many employees.

IllFonic has developed seven games since 2012 Nexuizincluding Dead Alliance and Arcade geddonand the studio also provided supporting development for Armored warfare, Star Citizenand Sonic Boom: Rise of Lyric. Killer Klowns from Outer Space: The Game recently received new content, including Klowntalities, mini-games and extra goodies for the Halloween period, and the 2024 title was another project developed and published by IllFonic.

Hunt or be hunted in this asymmetric multiplayer game that pits man against Predator. As part of a Fireteam, complete missions before the Predator finds you. Or be the predator and hunt your prey.

Be the predator – hunt down the opposing fire team and use deadly alien weapons to stalk your prey.

Go to the helicopter – complete challenging missions as part of a four-person fire team to escape.

Use human and alien weapons – fight with a state-of-the-art arsenal like the Fireteam, and deadly tech like the shoulder-mounted Plasma Caster, Combstick and more like the Predator.

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