When the grip of the COVID-19 pandemic loosened, people began spending less time in games, forcing many companies, including Bandai Namco, to restructure. According to Bloomberg, after the cancellation and closure of several projects, the studio began pushing employees out.

In Japan, labor rights are strictly protected by law, which has led local corporations to use so-called "banishment rooms" as a tactic to encourage voluntary resignations. Employees who are slated for downsizing are moved to separate rooms or even entire floors, and they are basically isolated with no tasks to their job. The workers understand that their intentionally reduced productivity will give managers leverage to reduce their severance packages, prompting many to spend their time in these rooms searching for new job opportunities.

According to Bloomberg, around 200 staff are put on bench. However, Bandai Namco has denied any intention to force out employees. A company representative explained that after a comprehensive analysis, it was decided to cancel several titles.

For example, Bandai Namco shut down Tales of the Rays for mobile, and soon it will close the Japanese version of the MMORPG Blue Protocol — its western launch has also been scrapped. In addition, a couple of projects in the Naruto and One Piece franchises are now paused. The company also lost a commission project from Nintendo.

Main image: steampowered.com

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