NetEase GamesMarvel Rivals developer NetEase has laid off most of the game’s team in the US, including its director. Despite MR continuing to be one of the most played multiplayer games out there, they’ve chosen to cut down their workforce by laying off their entire Seattle office.
NetEase released a statement on February 19, 2025, explaining the layoffs were made as part of “organizational reasons” and to “optimize development efficiency for the game.”
Rivals has often been praised for transparency from its developers, with many team members in China doing their absolute best to give the community updates on the game and insight into their balance changes.
Season 1.5 has also been well-received already, with players excited to get their hands on The Human Torch and The Thing. However, the recent layoff announcement has come as a shock, especially to Game Director Thaddeus Sasser, who announced on LinkedIn that he, along with his entire Seattle team, had been suddenly cut.
NetEase lays off key Marvel Rivals devs
It’s no secret that the games industry has been racked by layoffs in recent years, with even the biggest studios opting to cut the size of teams working on their projects or just closing down entirely.
Marvel Rivals developer NetEase is no different. Despite the game consistently pulling hundreds of thousands of concurrent players on Steam alone, not even counting other platforms, their Seattle studio has been shuttered.
Director Sasser posted on LinkedIn confirming the news, taking a few subtle jabs at the people who laid him and his team off and trying to help those who were laid off find new work.
Marvel Games“My stellar, talented team just helped deliver an incredibly successful new franchise in Marvel Rivals for NetEase Games… and were just laid off! Oh well! Times are tough all over – Let’s find these incredible people new jobs, because we all need to eat, right?” he explained.
He gave a lengthy endorsement for a now-former co-worker, ending the post by saying any future employer should consider not forcing them to relocate for their next gig.
Jack Burrows, another former NetEase employee, posted about the news saying: “Was an enormous pleasure to work with my American coworkers who join me in this sad culling. Just couldn’t dodge that big boot I guess, no matter how big the success of the gig.”
At the time of writing, their site still has job listings, but only for its Barcelona branch.
