32 votes

Telltale Games has laid off approximately 90% of their employees, leaving a staff of about 25 people

19 comments

  1. [3]
    Rocket_Man
    Link
    Wow that's really sad. It did seem like an inevitability though, they grew way too fast and didn't develop their niche enough. Instead they jumped on licensing deals and rode that as far as they...

    Wow that's really sad. It did seem like an inevitability though, they grew way too fast and didn't develop their niche enough. Instead they jumped on licensing deals and rode that as far as they could before collapsing.

    16 votes
    1. hotcouch
      Link Parent
      Not to mention their games just kinda... got worse. More sellouty fanservice than anything interesting. Once everyone kinda put together the fact that there are very few actual unique decisions...

      Not to mention their games just kinda... got worse. More sellouty fanservice than anything interesting. Once everyone kinda put together the fact that there are very few actual unique decisions that affect the endings, it got really boring.

      11 votes
    2. mrbig
      Link Parent
      I think focusing on very expensive IPs may have made things unnecessarily harder for them.

      I think focusing on very expensive IPs may have made things unnecessarily harder for them.

      1 vote
  2. [2]
    NeoTheFox
    Link
    I feel like if you played one of their games you've played them all, so it's not a big surprise. I wish they experimented more, like they did with Poker Night.

    I feel like if you played one of their games you've played them all, so it's not a big surprise. I wish they experimented more, like they did with Poker Night.

    8 votes
    1. Hypersapien
      Link Parent
      I wish they had stuck with actual point and click adventure games rather than interactive graphic novels. Their Sam & Max, Monkey Island and Back to the Future games were fantastic.

      I wish they had stuck with actual point and click adventure games rather than interactive graphic novels.

      Their Sam & Max, Monkey Island and Back to the Future games were fantastic.

      6 votes
  3. Deimos
    Link
    There's some more non-official info in this tweet thread as well (quoted fully below): https://twitter.com/joeparlock/status/1043223544639959040

    There's some more non-official info in this tweet thread as well (quoted fully below): https://twitter.com/joeparlock/status/1043223544639959040

    Okay, what I'm hearing from sources I trust is it's a total closure due to bankruptcy. Skeleton crew is finishing off The Walking Dead, and then the whole thing will shut. Everything else is cancelled. Only The Walking Dead is going ahead now.

    According to the same source, Telltale almost didn't get through Spring 2018. The Netflix deal fell apart, which was supposed to save it. The source also says they believe the publishing arm of Telltale is also done for, too. So the Stranded Deep announcement earlier today won't go ahead now. Not sure about 7 Days to Die yet. (Which doesn't mean either of those games are cancelled, just no longer published by TT)

    6 votes
  4. [3]
    calcifer
    Link
    Horrible news, but not really surprising unfortunately. I feel like they peaked with Tales from the Borderlands and it all went downhill from there... Also, since the link doesn't mention the 90%...

    Horrible news, but not really surprising unfortunately. I feel like they peaked with Tales from the Borderlands and it all went downhill from there...

    Also, since the link doesn't mention the 90% figure at all, I've searched and this is the only source I could find.

    4 votes
    1. [2]
      Deimos
      Link Parent
      The info's very scattered, I've seen "25 left out of ~250" a fair amount but I'm not sure if it's official or confirmed anywhere: https://twitter.com/JeffGrubb/status/1043223915596734464

      The info's very scattered, I've seen "25 left out of ~250" a fair amount but I'm not sure if it's official or confirmed anywhere: https://twitter.com/JeffGrubb/status/1043223915596734464

      4 votes
      1. calcifer
        Link Parent
        Yes, it seems to be an estimate based on insider information but even with a margin of error that's still a depressingly high number...

        Yes, it seems to be an estimate based on insider information but even with a margin of error that's still a depressingly high number...

        4 votes
  5. kripthaarin
    Link
    They've stopped TWD with Episode 2 and The Wolf Among Us 2 along with other projects have been cancelled. Sigh... Poor management seems to be the most cited reason for the numerous delays and...

    They've stopped TWD with Episode 2 and The Wolf Among Us 2 along with other projects have been cancelled. Sigh...

    Poor management seems to be the most cited reason for the numerous delays and insane crunch periods. I feel sorry for all those devs who've been laid off without severance pay.

    4 votes
  6. emnii
    Link
    This is a bummer but not terribly surprising. They made a hit with The Walking Dead and pivoted almost everything to that format, which worked better for some games than others. They never sorted...

    This is a bummer but not terribly surprising. They made a hit with The Walking Dead and pivoted almost everything to that format, which worked better for some games than others. They never sorted out some of the technical problems, with games as recent as season 1 Batman having some real performance hiccups without any particular improvements over The Walking Dead S1. Also, sounds like their management was a nightmare. I hope those who lost their jobs are able to find success elsewhere.

    3 votes
  7. [2]
    Valis
    (edited )
    Link
    When the first Walking Dead game came out I couldn't play it on PC, it was so buggy, graphics would tear to unplayable degrees. I waited a few years and tried it on PS3. It crashed within the...

    When the first Walking Dead game came out I couldn't play it on PC, it was so buggy, graphics would tear to unplayable degrees. I waited a few years and tried it on PS3. It crashed within the first hour. A few years ago I had a new computer and figured TTG would have fixed any issues with their engine. I put money down on Poker Night at the Inventory 2 and the game could hardly play. Despite all of their licenses, I'm not going to pay for consistently broken games.

    I was so surprised when they kept getting license after license considering my experience with them. I am still sad to hear about such a massive layoff. That is the stuff of nightmares.

    3 votes
    1. SourceContribute
      Link Parent
      My own experience is that Walking Dead season 1 worked, not buggy at all. However, the storyline of season 2 wasn't great and we only played out of a sense of obligation to completely finish it...

      Despite all of their licenses, I'm not going to pay for consistently broken games

      My own experience is that Walking Dead season 1 worked, not buggy at all. However, the storyline of season 2 wasn't great and we only played out of a sense of obligation to completely finish it all.

      They have decent technology and really good story-telling skills, it's too bad they didn't invest further into the tech.

      6 votes
  8. [2]
    clerical_terrors
    Link
    You have to wonder if this is actually going to do anything good for the company though, they already laid a bunch of people off and had to settle a big lawsuit. At this point we might actually be...

    You have to wonder if this is actually going to do anything good for the company though, they already laid a bunch of people off and had to settle a big lawsuit. At this point we might actually be looking at the first death throes of Telltale

    3 votes
    1. adragon8me
      Link Parent
      I agree, it does seem like a death of the company. That seems more like they're cleaning up than trying to recover.

      I agree, it does seem like a death of the company.

      These remaining employees will stay on “to fulfill the company’s obligations to its board and partners,” according to Telltale.

      That seems more like they're cleaning up than trying to recover.

  9. edca5
    (edited )
    Link
    I was really looking forward to TWD season 4. It was supposed to be the grand finale of a story that started in 2012 and know it'll be trapped in this limbo forever without a real ending. Looking...

    I was really looking forward to TWD season 4. It was supposed to be the grand finale of a story that started in 2012 and know it'll be trapped in this limbo forever without a real ending. Looking on the bright side this means that Clementine will live forever!

    1 vote
  10. thisonemakesyouthink
    Link
    I'm not even a big fan of their games and this is sad.

    I'm not even a big fan of their games and this is sad.