Why Did NetEase Lay Off Marvel Rivals Devs Despite Success?
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Updated On: February 19, 2025
NetEase Games has made the surprising decision to lay off its Seattle-based six-person development team behind Marvel Rivals, leaving the gaming community scratching its head. The layoffs come despite the game’s massive success, with over 20 million players just weeks after its December 2024 launch and around 250,000 daily concurrent players on Steam.
The news broke when Marvel Rivals game director Thaddeus Sasser shared his frustration on LinkedIn: “This is such a weird industry. My stellar, talented team just helped deliver an incredibly successful new franchise in Marvel Rivals for NetEase Games… and were just laid off!”
Behind the Marvel Rivals Layoffs
External sources suggest that many of the laid-off employees were involved in localization efforts. Contrary to common perception, localization isn’t just about translation—it also involves design, programming, and other core development tasks. Some speculate that the decision may have less to do with performance and more to do with cost-cutting and restructuring. Reports suggest that a significant portion of the U.S. team came from Sledgehammer Games, a studio known for its work on Call of Duty. NetEase may have decided that their higher U.S. salaries were no longer justifiable, shifting more work overseas.
Understandably, the gaming community isn’t happy about it. Marvel Rivals has quickly become one of the top five most-played games across PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X, and Steam. It hit 10 million players within just 72 hours of release and doubled that number in just 10 days. Given that kind of momentum, it’s hard to understand why NetEase would cut the team that helped make it all happen.
This move is part of a broader trend in the gaming industry, where even successful studios are making cutbacks. In early 2024, Riot Games announced plans to lay off 530 employees, cutting approximately 11% of its workforce.
What’s even more confusing about the layoffs is the timing. The game is still in its first season, and new content—including Fantastic Four characters—is on the way. With part of the development team gone, players are worried about what this means for the game’s future and whether updates will slow down or change direction.
Right now, all eyes are on NetEase to see what happens next. Will they address the backlash and clarify their plans for Marvel Rivals? Or will this be yet another example of a hit game suffering because of corporate restructuring? One thing’s for sure—this move has once again highlighted how unpredictable and unstable the gaming industry can be, no matter how successful a project appears.