Activision takes the knife to its studios

Layoffs at Radical and Neversoft, while Luxoflux, Underground Development and Red Octane get shut down

Activision has gone on a murderous rampage today, laying off a ton of staff and even closing two studios. Radical and Neversoft have been hit with layoffs but the exact number is unknown, and rumours suggest more could go at Neversoft once Guitar Hero 6 is done. Speaking to IGN, the company has said, "Activision Publishing continually evaluates its resources to ensure that they are properly matched against its product slate and strategic goals. In 2010, the companys SKU count will be smaller than in 2009 driven in part, by a decrease in the number of music-based games we will be releasing."

In worse news Activision has shut developers Luxoflux and closed Red Octane as well. Luxoflux’s last game was Transformers Revenge of the Fallen; meanwhile, Red Octane is the company who, with Harmonix, created the Guitar Hero guitars. Reports also suggest Activision is closing the studio that developed Guitar Hero: Van Halen, Underground Development.

Sources: Kotaku and IGN