Capcom is laying off an undisclosed number of employees today as part of a company reorganization.
This shake-up also has Capcom senior vice president Christian Svensson voluntarily stepping down.
“After nearly eight years, it is my final day at Capcom,” Svensson wrote on his Google+ page (as spotted by IGN). “This departure is not a bad thing for me, and it’s happening mostly because I’d suggested it during the early planning for today’s reorg. While I wish the company the best of luck, Capcom is going in a different direction, and the need for people at my level, relative to other areas, is lacking. Those who know me well know that I’ve been ready to go for quite some time.”
Svensson oversaw all of Capcom’s North and South American publishing efforts. He was also well liked in the fighting-game community for interfacing with that crowd regarding Capcom’s titles.
“Sadly, I’m not the only one affected by the reorganization today,” wrote Svensson. The former executive says that he wants to help those others find new work and is asking for help from the gaming industry to make “love connections.”
We’ve reached out to Capcom to determine exactly how many jobs it cut, and we will update this post with its response.
“As for my future, I’ve got a few interesting opportunities from a variety of sectors in the gaming market already lined up for consideration,” wrote Svensson. “About the only thing they have in common is that the level of authority will be more in line with the levels of responsibility than I’ve had the last several years, and they all have the potential to disrupt the gaming space in exciting ways.”
Capcom joins Activision, Electronic Arts, Square Enix, and Valve in the club of publishers and developers that have recently cut staff.