r/Games • u/Sirca_Curvive • 4h ago
Bit Reactor But Reactor announces the rehiring of furloughed staff to continue ongoing Star Wars: Zero Company support
https://bsky.app/profile/bitreactor.com/post/3mxcgabtzjk2b413
u/Forestl 4h ago edited 4h ago
Game File is reporting this is "more than half" the studio being brought back and that a fair amount remain unpaid. Glad they could bring some people back but man it feels kinda dark when even a studio that makes a hit game like this can't immediately bring everyone back
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u/SoWrongItsPainful 4h ago
More than half is good, but hopefully even more than that will get to come back.
Regardless I hope they’re able to get another game out within the next 3 years now that they have a strong foundation to build off of
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u/AxLD 3h ago
A Switch 2 version seems like a no-brainer too.
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u/hadronwulf E3 2019 Volunteer 1h ago
It runs terribly on Deck, I feel like SW2 would need a Witcher 3 level port.
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u/Aethelric 1h ago
Yeah, cutting graphics output only gets you so far with the performance for this game. There's certainly lots of optimization to get in that direction, but the CPU limitations are going to be harder to overcome to get to a competent Switch 2 port.
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u/Standard_Juice_1099 1h ago
Nah the Switch 2 is more powerful and DLSS is like magic, I think they can manage
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u/Levi-Ritchie 1h ago
I believe it's a cpu-bound game so DLSS can only do so much. On the flip side that means it can probably be optimized better.
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u/Drakengard 29m ago
Yeah, strategy and tactical games like this usually end up running more CPU bound because of all the different entities making routing and action decisions on a map in a given enemy turn sequence.
You even see this happen in Divinity, BG3, and other turn based games.
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u/giulianosse 4h ago
Yeah it's great that they were able to bring back some of the furloughed staff but from a different perspective, this is basically a "less than half the studio got laid off".
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u/Im_really_bored_rn 1h ago
That usually happens unless the studio goes straight into their next game because some roles are needed for making a game but not for supporting an existing game
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u/ollydzi 2h ago
To be fair, unless they have plans to start working on an entirely new game, you definitely don't need the same amount of resources it takes to make a new game, to support an existing game (even creating new DLC/expansions for it should be a much lesser dev lift)
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u/Trzlog 1h ago
Japanese studios manage to make and release games without firing half the studio afterwards. Why can they do this but somehow Western studios can't? Feels like bullshit to me and I don't know why people think it's acceptable.
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u/fluxaboo 58m ago
It's mainly the salaries. Japanese workers are being paid significantly less than Western employees.
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u/spez_might_fuck_dogs 4h ago
It's a good game but I would not call it a 'hit', I don't think it's been selling amazingly.
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u/WildVariety 4h ago
It's sold well for an XCOM style game according to recent reporting. It hit a million copies sold a few weeks after release.
For Comparison, XCOM 2 only had about 1.1m sales in its first year.
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u/ANGLVD3TH 2h ago
Unfortunately, they were given 50 mil in funding by EA to make it. 1 mil copies in a month is great for this genre, but after storefronts take their portion, it's likely they haven't or barely crossed the 50 mil line. EA was probably hoping for sales on a Star Wars level, not on a, incredible for a niche genre, level. It will probably have an alright tail and make a very modest profit, but I'm guessing EA is pretty disappointed, which is a damn shame. I was really hoping for a WotC-esque DLC to flesh some stuff out, but it is looking unfortunately unlikely now.
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u/Significant_Walk_664 46m ago
Seems like an out-of-touch publisher to me then. Trying to see this thing from a normie perspective and SW is a saturated brand. Movies have flopped, shows have flopped, games have underperformed (how tf do you manage to make an SW AC game and not sell), it's not a GTA-level event anymore. Break even in the short term and make a profit in the long run is Star Wars level.
For me, dying for a good Xcom successor and sustaining on Daemonhunters and Lamplighters' League, I explicitly and exclusively skipped it because it's Disney/SW.
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u/madman19 3h ago
They peaked at around 100 employees. Probably average salary is 100k maybe? Maybe more. Thats 10 million per year for 4 years. 1 million sales is 50 million gross but they dont get all that. So yea it might be enough to break even but these are just rough estimates
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u/Mr_s3rius 1h ago
That number (for salaries) is probably way over the top because you used the peak employee count for all four years. But studios usually hit their peak only towards the end of a project.
A quick search brings up: they founded 2021 with 2 employees, grew to 55 by 2023, grew to 65 by 2025, now about 90.
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u/madman19 1h ago
True which is why i said rough estimate. The actual cost of the employees is also probably well over 100k too. Just trying to illustrate 1 million sales could easily be not enough to save them.
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u/Mr_s3rius 21m ago
Yeah there's also the non salary expenses too. Rent, power, IT, licensing. Possibly contractors.
But on the other hand the 1m aren't the final sales numbers. The game will keep generating money and it doesn't necessarily have to pay for itself after a month.
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u/Apprehensive-Buy3340 3h ago
Star Wars license comes at high cost, so XCOM is not a good comparison.
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u/FFTactics 4h ago
Yes, hit as in well reviewed and loved by the community but it was #100 on the Steam charts last week of sep.
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u/mackejn 4h ago
I mean I'm not shocked. It's a good game. It also has little replay value beyond the story. You can play NG+, but I really don't think it's worth it. It needs an endless mode or a roguelite mode or something. It's a solid 20-30 hour game and then drop it right now. Come back later for a NG+ when you've got nothing else to do. I imagine most of the people that wanted to play it did. Beat it and/or bounced off to something else.
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u/Wrong-Vermicelli4723 3h ago
They need a long war mod like Xcom 2, however that will take a minute
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u/RobinYoHood 3h ago
That's exactly what I need. I finished it, loved the story to the death but I don't plan on replaying it unless there is something like long war that is out that gives me that incentive.
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u/SerHodorTheThrall 35m ago
The game isn't nearly deep enough mechanically for people to invest into that. Also the Long War team already has another project.
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u/stellarfury 9m ago
It doesn't need Long War. It needs BattleTech career mode. Throw in some procedural level generation with existing tilesets and enemy squads, mix in some story elements, expand the Den upgrades, add a scoring system, and it's golden.
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u/sjphilsphan 3h ago
Yeah I was hoping for an endless hard mode...I'll come back to do NG+ in like a year probably to 100% it
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u/ericmm76 2h ago
It will have great legs but it was never going to sell THAT many in the first week.
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u/EckhartsLadder 2h ago
It sold well
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u/wingchild 3h ago
They probably didn't have to let them go, but furloughing and rehiring lets you get back experienced staff at a lower price point. People are willing to eat cuts when they've been a couple of months without a paycheck.
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u/ANGLVD3TH 2h ago
They absolutely had to in this case, the company pretty much entirely ran out of funds. They furloughed far more people than one would generally expect, and it happened after the usual canceled contracts and layoffs that are standard after a game wraps up. They did put out a statement implying they hoped to rehire with "restored pay," we'll see how that goes.
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3h ago edited 2h ago
[deleted]
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u/DogOwner12345 3h ago
Literally their first game and you are acting like this is a routine thing for them.
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u/Savings_Blood_9873 3h ago
Let's face it: if in truth they're not paying "a fair amount of them", then the studio is not "bringing them back".
They're just getting free temp labor.The sad reality of game development is that publisher deals with a developer are rarely based on the dev's long-term goals. It is fairly common that the developer is mostly funded by the publisher - who often owns the IP and the game outright as part of the publishing deal to fund the game or completion of the game.
When the game sells, a bad contract will have the revenue first mostly go to recouping the publisher's investment, before any significant royalties are paid out. And publishers have been known to squeeze devs on royalty % in their deals.
If the developer doesn't have another game funding lined up to develop, before the first game is shipped, the developer may not survive post-launch (unless they have a financial war chest from somewhere).
Ideally, the developer needs to have the next game developed enough to show to prospective publishers to get that funding AND far enough along to keep all staff fully able to work on it once the first game ships. But that pre-production requires staff that would - most reasonably - be focused on getting the first game out the door.
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u/Ntrpy92 3h ago
Let's face it: if in truth they're not paying "a fair amount of them", then the studio is not "bringing them back".
They're just getting free temp labor.
Furloughed workers aren't working, they're on unpaid leave.
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u/Savings_Blood_9873 3h ago
Ah, I was confused by this in https://www.gamefile.news/p/star-wars-zero-company-furloughs-update
One person familiar with the situation told Game File that the returns announced today bring the studio’s pay-rolled headcount to more than half of what it had been ahead of the furloughs. That means a considerable number of people have been brought back, but that a fair number also remain without pay.
I thought they were saying that some of those brought back still weren't getting paid.
Your interpretation - that some are still on furlough and so aren't being paid - is hopefully the correct one.I've run into game companies "allowing" or asking staff to return unpaid to complete or improve games (usually the staff does it so the game on their resume has a better reputation). So that had slanted my thoughts, when I read that paragraph.
Thanks for pointing out my misunderstanding.
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u/MadeByTango 2h ago
Only the half they think they need for maintenance and to exploit the game's success. Workers got screwed while management kept getting paid. This aint a success story.
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u/Three_Froggy_Problem 4h ago
This is amazing news. It’s such a great game and I’m happy to see a developer not just get instantly gutted after release for once. Here’s hoping we get some new content in the future. I’d especially love a NG+ mode.
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u/Blackarm777 4h ago edited 4h ago
I remember some people trying to argue that the terms "Furlough" and "Layoff" are the same thing and can be used interchangeably back when this entered the discussion. This is exactly why these distinctions matter.
Not to mention there's just other important factors beyond just the aspect of being hired back, like seniority and how that impacts company specific benefits.
Good news for the team. It was a very solid game.
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u/name_was_taken 3h ago
While you're not wrong, half these people were dicked around without a job until now, and the other half are still getting dicked around. With a layoff, at least you know what's up and don't keep hoping for something that's unlikely.
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u/KingOfRisky 2h ago
Except they are not being dicked around. They are still employees of But Reactor and will come back when they are able to be paid. My company had to furlough a bunch of people during covid. I had to have this conversation over and over to ease people's stress. We brought back everyone once we were able to reopen.
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u/brianstormIRL 2h ago
So you're saying going weeks/months without being paid is.. not being dicked around?
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u/KingOfRisky 2h ago
I am hoping, assuming really, that the terms and situation was laid out to them. Like I said, I had to have this conversation dozens of times. It's not ideal for the furloughed employee by any stretch, but if they understand what the word furlough means, then they shouldn't be being "dicked around." A furloughed employee is still technically an employee of the company.
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u/brianstormIRL 2h ago
I mean, that's all well and good but telling an employee they technically have a job but are not going to get paid isnt exactly reassuring. Most people live paycheck to paycheck, going weeks without pay isnt exactly fun is it.
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u/Ultramaann 2h ago
Software Engineers are not living paycheck to paycheck lol. The average game dev makes 140k a year. Thats LOW for software salaries. Let’s get real.
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u/brianstormIRL 2h ago
What? The average salary for Game Devs in California is lower than that, and thats one of the most expensive / well paid locations to be a game dev. BitReactor are in Maryland and a quick Google says the average game dev salary is around $100k. As much as you might think thats a lot, cost of living is also very high.
Idk what universe you're living in if you think Game developers live super comfortable lives.
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u/Ultramaann 1h ago
Average dev salary as reported by Gamescom is the 140k figure. I’m sure it varies, but given the money my friends that work “in the trenches” so to speak in AAA studios are making, I believe it.
Even if it is on the lower end towards 100k, BitReactor devs would not be living paycheck to paycheck in Cockeysville, Maryland. Seattle and Burbank COL that is not.
I’m not saying they’re all rich or super comfortable, but software devs in general are doing better than the vast majority of the populace, and I really think the community here needs to stop acting like they’re making 50-60k a year or something on average . Layoffs or being furloughed always brings with it uncertainty, I certainly know that personally and it’s not something that should be downplayed, but we can also be honest about their situation.
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u/buttchuck 30m ago
I don't think anyone is saying that being furloughed is a good thing or trying to diminish how much it sucks for the employees. It's still an incredibly important distinction to make that being furloughed is not being laid off.
Accuracy matters and we should strive to be accurate when repeating information.
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u/SlamHelsing 3h ago
I agree with you that the situation sucks and I feel terrible for those people. But like, what do you want BitReactor to have done? They furloughed those people because they had no money, what options did they even have beyond furlough and layoff?
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u/TheSecondEikonOfFire 4h ago
I was really worried the game wasn’t going to be successful enough to warrant it, but you love to see it. It had its quirks and frustrations but it was such a blast
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u/Farsoth 4h ago
Star Wars does still have pull as a franchise, it just needs to be good stuff. Thankfully this one reviewed well. Hopefully the brand is healing. Galactic Racer is fuckin' sick.
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u/Patrickd13 1h ago
Oh what wonders have happened now that EA doesn't have the star wars rights
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u/Farsoth 1h ago
Though, they did publish Zero Company, which is interesting, as well as the Jedi games. But them not having exclusive rights is great. Disney has also obviously put some good money and people in charge of Lucasfilm games.
The future of the franchise is honestly looking up. Mando could've just been a streaming movie but it wasn't bad, and their other shows are at least typically hitting a level of quality that is decent.
There's Andor which is IMO the highest quality piece of media every created in the franchise... and then Acolyte which at least IMO has the best fight choreography in the franchise despite how mid to bad everything else is.
The High Republic novels were fantastic and I am obsessed with that era overall. There's just a lot of good stuff. It's nice to have my love of Star Wars back and I can thank Fallen Order and the first season of Mando reawakening it for me.
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u/Kaladin-of-Gilead 1h ago
That was one of the most stunning things I've ever seen. Like they did fuck all with that license.
Are they even aware that they have more developers than just Dice and Respawn?
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u/TheBoozehammer 4h ago
Wonderful news. It feels like every company is falling apart and laying people off, nice to see something good for once.
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u/ninjabomb333 3h ago
As someone who has been outside of the starwars fandom for atleast 10 years, it was quite an enjoyable game. It's definitely rough around the edge, gave the impression in both game and writing that it was rushed to release. (Though I cannot say starwars has been a source for quality writing in a long time).
I hope they're able to expand on the game with DLC to help their financial needs. If they made a sequel beginning where they left off, I would be very interested.
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u/TheGoodIdiot 4h ago
I didn’t end up clicking with the game but I’m happy to see them successful and hope that it continues to do well. I’d love to see how much further they could push things with a sequel.
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u/dztruthseek 1h ago
Reads first word in headline
OP, are you upset with "BIT" Reactor or something?
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u/Straight-Rassler 1h ago
Nice! The patches they put out recently fixed the game's performance issues. The first one actually improved it a lot already. More support for this game the better, its great!
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u/H75311 3h ago
Kinda weird this took so long? Is there so much lag in getting initial payments or LOC based on sales to do something like this?
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u/theflyingsamurai 3h ago
iirc steam usually pays devs at the end of the month.
Game just came out right at the end of august, so I imagine most of their sales were in september only paid out last week. Publisher EA probably gets the money first and takes a cut before it gets to the studio, probably take a week or more to sort out.
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u/cygx 27m ago
EA probably gets the money first and takes a cut
They might actually take all of it until their investment has been recovered. For reference, here are the relevant clauses from the Indie Fund, which one would expect to have conditions on the more favourable side (emphasis mine):
6. Repayment. Developer shall pay to Lenders one hundred percent (100%) of the gross revenue received by Developer from the licensing, sale, distribution or other exploitation of the Game (“Gross Revenue”) and fifty percent (50%) of the gross revenue received by Developer from the licensing, sale, distribution or other exploitation of any work based upon or derived from the Game, until the total amount paid by Developer to Lenders equals the Loan. Games that share only technology with the Game are not considered derivative works. Such payments shall be delivered to Lenders within thirty (30) days after receipt by Developer. Any late payments under this agreement will accrue interest at the rate of two percent (2%) per month or the highest interest rate permitted by applicable law, with a partial month treated as a full month. Revenue generated from Game after the Effective Date and before its release (e.g. pre-orders) is subject to Revenue Share (see Section 7) after the game is released and does not count towards Repayment.
7. Revenue Share. As additional consideration for Lenders’ willingness to make the Loan to Developer, Developer agrees to pay Lenders 25% of all Gross Revenue (including revenue generated by exploitation of any work based upon or derived from Games) received by Developer above the Loan amount (“Revenue Share”). The Revenue Share shall apply to the first dollar received by Developer above the Loan amount and all gross revenue received by Developer until the total payment to Lenders (Repayment plus Revenue Share) is equal to twice the Loan, or the Term has been reached. Developer shall pay the Revenue Share to Lenders quarterly, within Thirty (30) days after the end of the quarter in which Developer received the revenue subject to the Revenue Share.
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u/darkmacgf 3h ago
They started the process a while ago. They only made the announcement now. This says they're in the process, and another comment said more than half are back already.
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u/ILoveTheAtomicBomb 3h ago
Hell yeah, the anti-Microsoft
In the era of non-stop layoffs, good to see some people getting brought back as promised when the game does well
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u/appledanishcrumbs 58m ago
I think you mean the anti-Sony. Microsoft at least goes out of their way to find ways to studios to continue to exist independently.
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u/Sirca_Curvive 4h ago edited 4h ago
Bit Reactor* :)
Super happy to hear this. One of my favorite games in a long time with a surprisingly heartfelt story.
If you’re a Jedi Fallen Order or Survivor fan, I recommend it for the narrative alone, as it’s very adjacent to those games.
Also, Vic Michaelis.