All Annapurna Interactive staff resign following dispute with owner

At a time when mass layoffs are commonplace in the videogame industry, such as Microsoft’s recent announcement that a further 650 redundancies are being made at Xbox, we’re now reporting on staff walking out of their jobs. Following a dispute, there have been mass resignations at Annapurna Interactive.Annapurna Interactive’s entire team walks out following spinoff disputeAs reported by Bloomberg, all 25 Annapurna Interactive employees have left the company following a dispute with Annapurna Studios owner Megan Ellison. The team, led by Annapurna Interactive president Nathan Gary, was negotiating to separate the video game division from the main company so it could act as a separate entity. A spokesperson told Bloomberg that both parties failed to reach an agreement after Annapurna explored a spinoff, leading to Gary, along with other executives and the rest of the team, resigning.In a statement, Gary and the team said: “All 25 members of the Annapurna Interactive team collectively resigned. This was one of the hardest decisions we have ever had to make and we did not take this action lightly.”Unsurprisingly, Annapurna Interactive’s current ghostship status has left the developers partnered with Annapurna Interactive wondering what the walk-out means for their upcoming projects. Former Annapurna Interactive co-founder Hector Sanchez has now returned to the company as Interactive’s new president, and has reportedly told developers that all existing contracts will be honored and that staff will be replaced.”Our top priority is continuing to support our developer and publishing partners during this transition,” Megan Ellison told Bloomberg News. “We’re committed to not only our existing slate of games but also expanding our presence in the interactive space as we continue to look for opportunities to take a more integrated approach to linear and interactive storytelling across film and TV, gaming, and theater.”Annapurna Interactive has a reputation for publishing high-quality games, such as Stray, Cocoon, What Remains of Edith Finch, and many others — some of which have been featured on our list of the best Game Pass games.



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