Zynga has reportedly closed down Draw Something studio OMGPOP and laid off all of its staff just 14 months after it was acquired in a $180 million deal. OMGPOP released its Draw Something sequel back in April, but it appears it wasn’t the success the company hoped it would be.
When OMGPOP released Draw Something back in February 2012, it quickly became the latest craze in mobile gaming and attracted millions of players across multiple platforms. With Zynga also doing well at the time, the company splashed its cash and snapped up OMGPOP just six weeks later.
Unfortunately for Zynga, gamers became bored of Draw Something almost as quickly as they became obsessed with it. Just a month after the acquisition, the game had lost 5 million players, and the exodus showed no signs of stopping.
OMGPOP attempted to breath new life into the franchise with Draw Something 2 back in April, but it seems the ploy hasn’t worked, and just over a month later, OMGPOP is reportedly closing down.
The company’s former vice president of human resources, Ali Nicolas, confirmed the move in a disgruntled tweet after she learned of her future via Facebook:
I learned via Facebook I was laid off today and @OMGPOP office is closed. Thanks @zynga for again reminding me how not to operate a business
OMGPOP itself also published a message on Twitter that confirmed “this is the last day at Zynga for many OMGPOP staff.” The studio didn’t confirm how many of its workers would remain, but it would appear that most have now departed.
SlashGear notes that the OMGPOP studio was located in New York City, and Zynda recently announced it was closing “Zynga New York,” along with its offices in Dallas and Los Angeles. It also confirmed that it is laying off 18% of its workforce in an effort to cut costs and keep its company afloat.
Zynga laid off a lot of employees last year, too, but it wasn’t quite as open about it. The company actually made the move during an Apple event in the hope that the news would go largely unnoticed.
Via: SlashGear
