Layoffs continue at Sony Interactive Entertainment, and this time nearly an entire UI/UX division has been let go.
Photo credit: Ryosuke
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Sony is trying to cut costs to improve profit margins and has laid off hundreds of workers in the process. Now the cutting continues as Sony’s gaming segment orders more job terminations–this time affecting a group that’s responsible for making big changes to what users see on the PS5’s dashboard.
The new layoff report comes from Oscar Diaz, who operates under the handle Ryosuke said this on Twitter: “Most of my team was just laid off from PlayStation. It was a dream to get to work with Sony on the platform I’d grown up playing since the PS1 and contribute to the PS5, Portal, PSVR2, PS App, and future consoles. If you know anyone who needs an engineer, feel free to reach out.”
The news comes at an interesting time for Sony, who had just previously launched the mega-successful PlayStation 5 30th anniversary themes campaign. Fans loved the PS5 themes, which had chronicled the decades-long history of PlayStation platforms with commemorative and interactive visual backgrounds.
These themes were temporary and have since been removed from download. Sony has confirmed that it has no plans to offer PlayStation 5 themes.
UI and UX are important parts for any console, but Sony has chosen a more lightweight OS to ensure streamlined operations and faster navigation/startup. The lighter footprint also reserves less space and Sony is keen on making sure that the PS5 retains its speedy response times.
It’s unknown whether or not AI toolsets had anything to do with the layoffs.
Reports indicate that Sony is gearing up for its new PlayStation 6 console and it’ll be interesting to see how much of a role that UI/UX plays in this new system.