Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League Studio Reports More Layoffs

Rocksteady Faces Further Layoffs Following Suicide Squad's Underperformance

Rocksteady Studios, renowned for the acclaimed Batman: Arkham series, has experienced another wave of layoffs, following the disappointing performance of its latest title, Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League. The game's mixed reception and subsequent divisive post-launch DLC contributed to the studio's financial difficulties. Rocksteady announced the cessation of further content updates for Suicide Squad in January, concluding its storyline with a final update.

The game's underperformance, reported by Warner Bros. in February as falling short of sales projections, triggered an initial round of layoffs in September, impacting roughly half of the studio's QA staff. This reduction significantly shrank the team from 33 to 15 employees.

However, this was not the end of the job cuts. Recent reports from Eurogamer indicate additional layoffs at the close of 2024, affecting remaining QA personnel, as well as programmers and artists. Several anonymous employees confirmed their dismissals to Eurogamer, highlighting the ongoing impact of Suicide Squad's failure. Warner Bros. has yet to publicly address these recent layoffs, mirroring their silence regarding the September cuts.

Rocksteady's Layoffs Ripple Through WB Games

The negative impact of Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League's performance extends beyond Rocksteady. WB Games Montreal, the studio behind Batman: Arkham Origins and Gotham Knights, also reported layoffs in December, primarily affecting quality assurance staff who supported Rocksteady's post-launch DLC development for Suicide Squad.

The final DLC, released December 10th, introduced Deathstroke as the fourth playable character. While Rocksteady plans one last update for Suicide Squad later this month, the studio's future plans remain uncertain. The game's underperformance casts a shadow on Rocksteady's otherwise impressive track record of successful DC-themed video games, leaving a significant mark in the form of substantial job losses.