Eurogamer launched an investigation against Firesprite, the creators of Horizon Call of the Mountain, the developers accuse the studio of a toxic work culture.
According to a Eurogamer investigation, Firesprite studio, which was acquired by Sony in 2021, has been hit with several layoffs and downsizing amid allegations of a toxic work culture. This has reportedly been going on for months. The workers spoke on condition of anonymity to reveal the full extent of the Liverpool-based team’s problems.
Firesprite, the Horizon Call of the Mountain developer for PS VR2, has undergone many changes in recent years.
One of these that was mentioned was the overloading of individual employees. The latter occurred after a change of management, which led to employee dissatisfaction. This new lead comes from XDev, Sony’s supporting studio. They were accused of gender and age discrimination, although an internal investigation confirmed this was allegedly a “misunderstanding”.
This work environment was not the worst. Recent layoffs have hurt the Liverpool studio. A Twisted Metal live service game is also said to have been cancelled. Moreover, Eurogamer confirms they were also working on another major Sony franchise in parallel.
Firesprite managers are accused of a toxic work environment
It is also claimed that many employees quit after receiving retention bonus payments last October. This money is usually given to talented developers to keep them in the studio. As an incentive to stay after the merger. It seems that after receiving this, some employees left their jobs.
On the other hand, on Glassdoor (a job portal where you can find information about companies), you can read harsh criticisms of former employees against the management, such as “culture of fear”, “toxic culture of harassment”, “they only care about their money”.
One source points out that the previous Firesprite was a mess, but what Sony changed after the acquisition only made it worse.
Anonymous reports have also appeared from several developers. They asked not to be named so as not to harm their careers. According to some, the changes were necessary after the PlayStation purchase. Others, on the other hand, believe that Sony’s corporate vision and the changes it introduced have harmed the working environment. In other words, the investigation points to a completely different studio than before the acquisition.
End of trust?
One of the things that allegedly hurt the team’s management was the death of one of the HR managers. The person was not replaced. That left a small group of HR people managing a massive studio of around 300 people. It is also said that almost all of Firesprite’s founders have left the company. The reasons for their departure are unknown, but it was speculated internally that Sony forced them out.
Regarding the latter, they cite the example of Graeme Ankers, the former head of the studio, who spoke openly about the long-term future of Firesprite in meetings, but left shortly after.
Because of this, many called his departure “unbelievable”. The new bosses at XDev were the main builders of the toxic environment. Employees described them to Eurogamer as “tyrants”, etc.
“Trust is over,” an anonymous source commented. 13 complaints of sexual and age discrimination were received against the two leaders. In theory, an internal investigation pointed out that the whole thing was a “misunderstanding”. However, there were reports that there were developers who were willing to take legal action and take the matter further. Allegedly, these people were paid by Sony, reports Eurogamer.
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