THQ lays off 20 staff as it shifts to dev focus

Around 20 THQ employees have been laid off at the beleagured publisher, a leaked internal e-mail by company president Jason Rubin has revealed.

THQ recently posted positive earnings for the first time in several quarters, leading many to hope that the desperate shedding of studios and employees had ended.

The leaked e-mail however has revealed that 20 staff from marketing and production branches have been laid off as the publisher shifts focus toward development and different distribution methods.

"As you know, it is my vision for THQ to enter into new markets though new distribution methodologies, and reaching those consumers in those markets will take a different approach to marketing," read the document.

"It is also vitally important that we improve our production methodologies and oversight so that we are shipping better titles, on budget and on time."

"In our quest to make these changes, I have been looking at the Marketing and Production structure at HQ along with the heads of those departments, Rich Williams and Ron Moravek. We have identified changes that need to be made and thus today we reduced the size of these departments by about 20 individuals."

The e-mail continues to say that there is a good chance that in the future more jobs will be created as the publisher’s fortunes reverse, and anticipates 20 new hires over the next year at Volition alone.