Former Red 5 Studios employees are suggesting the company is in big trouble today. Community Manager FadedPez has apparently been discharged from the studio.
So I'm no longer with Red5 as of today, no goodbye post but may solo stream later
— FadedPez (@FadedPez) July 25, 2016
Matt DeWald was a producer on Firefall until March of this year; he suggests the remainder of the studio has been let go.
Sorry to hear about all the people left at Red 5 Studios getting let go. If you have job openings, be sure to reach out.
— Matt DeWald (@mattdewald) July 25, 2016
There’s more on the Firefall Reddit sub.
It is unknown whether and how Firefall itself will be impacted as Red 5 is owned by Chinese company The9 and has had a rocky year. Back in December, rumors began to circulate that Red 5 had missed payroll, followed by a brutal company meeting, late salaries, and the inevitable “reorganization” layoffs and departures. The studio shakeup was itself followed by a hurried and bug-laden Razor’s Edge patch. More recently, The9 traded part of its stake in Red 5 to a Cayman Islands cashmere manufacturer and announced mobile and console ports for Firefall.
If the rumors are true, our sympathies are with those affected.
MMO Fallout correctly points out this morning that the stock value of L&A International Holdings — that’d be the company that in part manufactures cashmere and has that partial interest in Red 5 — crashed hard last week and indeed trading of the stock was suspended entirely.
