The publisher identified “smartphone and PC online gaming” as the biggest growth area for the company, and aims to enhance the newly formed digital games department to work within those fields.
However in order to do so, Sega must make significant job cuts in other departments and will be offering some of its staff voluntary retirement. At the moment over 300 employees are scheduled to be made redundant. “We are under consultation with a limited number of staff in the European publishing business and will be able to confirm decisions regarding any potential redundancies in the coming weeks,” said a Sega spokesperson.
Sega of America is likely to be worst hit, not only downsizing its San Francisco HQ to another location in Southern California, but also offering 120 of its staff voluntary retirement. While Sega has seen recent success by publishing the likes of Football Manager 2015 and Alien: Isolation, the company has underperformed with other console titles such as Sonic Boom. Sega issued a notice to investors on Friday explaining that it expects to make just $34 million in net profit by the end of the financial year; a massive drop compared to the $260 million it made the year before
