Storm8 Layoffs

[Eluzyion]

I just read Storm8 laid off 130 employees now they're working with 110 instead of 240. I wish everyone that was laid off well and hope they find new employment quickly. Not sure what this means for Forest Story but hope the game will continue for a long time.. I first saw this on the Dragon Story forum where Flatfoot commented he's still there, I then looked it up on the Internet and from what I read it happened around the 17th of this month? I hope we still have our helpful mods around and that the support we put into this game is enough to keep it flourishing! Also hoping suggestions by players will be looked at so problems are fixed for long time players to be able to play and continue to support this great game.

[supermaay]

Here is the new I read:

Storm8 lays off about 130 from its social mobile gaming studio
DEAN TAKAHASHI@DEANTAK FEBRUARY 16, 2017 9:33 AM

Social mobile game publisher Storm8 laid off a large number of its employees this week.

By one account, the San Mateo, California-based company cut about 130 jobs, going down from 240 people to 110.The move shows just how hard it is to compete in the $40 billion mobile gaming business, where the ranks of developers are splitting into the haves and have-nots.

“If you look at their lineup in the past two years, it’s pretty easy to connect the dots,” said one employee affected by the layoffs. The employee asked not to be identified.




Storm8 was particularly vulnerable because it makes casual mobile games, a sector that has fickle followers and a lot of competitors. Storm8 had hits that generated tens of millions of downloads, but the content wasn’t particularly memorable, and it never rose to the top of the charts akin to games like Candy Crush Saga. Storm8’s games include Candy Blast Mania, Bubble Mania, Dragon Story, and Dream City: Metropolis.

Perry Tam and other former Facebook employees founded the company as a social game publisher in 2009. They adapted to mobile games with the rise of mobile, and grew to hundreds of employees. Tam broke the news to employees yesterday in an emotional meeting.

In a statement, Tam said, “The mobile gaming industry has continued to rapidly evolve. We believe having a leaner organization with sharper focus is essential to win in the growing $40-plus billion mobile games market. As such, we’ve made the very difficult decision to realign resources and part ways with approximately 130 talented colleagues. We truly appreciate everyone’s hard work and dedication to Storm8 over the years. Moving forward, a more streamlined Storm8 will build off a strong foundation, be better positioned to support our existing games and successfully bring new games to market. We remain very excited for the future of mobile games and being well-positioned for sustained profitable growth.”

[Updated: 11:24 am 2/16/17 with company quote].

[Eluzyion]

That's the article I read as well.. Makes me sad, but crossing fingers our game will be ok.

[GreytMom]

Oh, no :-( I wish good luck to all those that have been laid off. There is a bigger plan for them.
I certainly hope that this restructuring is successful and those that are still there remain relatively secure or that they find the place they are supposed to be.

And of course, I hope our game stays supported now that I'm addicted.

[Alideh]

Wow, I'm sorry to hear. My condolences. I really hope they don't end up closing up all their games, I hope it is only temporarly.
I hope those that need the job find something else soon.
I really hope the game starts growing soon. I remember seeing Fashion Story sorta go down hill little by little, less players, higher prices for items and items giving out less coins, so I'm scared their other games are going to suffer the same... I hope not. I really hope you guys can figure something out, maybe give players the option of seeing ads for a week and getting like 10 runes, I'm sure a lot of players would jump on that and accept it and thus leading you guys to get some income from advertisement.


I really hope Fantasy FOrest doesn't close down :/ I am addicted to this game and don't want to think about all my animals dissapearing... along with Storm8

[FlatFoot]

Thanks all for the kind words. As Eluyzion said, I'm still at the studio and will be taking back primary responsibilities of Fantasy Forest.

[Eluzyion]

Thanks all for the kind words. As Eluyzion said, I'm still at the studio and will be taking back primary responsibilities of Fantasy Forest.

Yay! Such good news!! Welcome back Flatfoot!

[Alideh]

Thanks all for the kind words. As Eluyzion said, I'm still at the studio and will be taking back primary responsibilities of Fantasy Forest.

Welcome back, and Hope you guys keep fighting. Wishing Storm8 the best hoping you guys manage to end up better than ever with sales and things. *hugs* to you all!

[mysticalfairy320]

Nice to see you back, I wish everyone the best that is no longer there, and the ones that are there now I know it must be hard to see so many friends let go so I hope you are okay during these hard times. I work for a big company that did the same. Hopefully in time things will get better soon, stay positive!

[Morag2000]

I am so sad to read about the S8 lay offs, good luck to all who have been affected.

Welcome back Flat Foot glad to hear that you are still working on Fantasy Forest.

S8 please, please please, keep Fantasy Forest going as it is the best game on the Internet and I so love playing the game and would be devastated to see all my beautiful animals dissappear.

I wish all of you the very best and please keep Fantasy Forest going.