Metacore closes Germany and Sweden operations as it confirms 159 layoffs

• Merge Mansion growth has plateaued and new game launched have failed, says CEO Mika Tammenkoski.

Metacore is shutting down operations in Germany and Sweden as part of its company-wide restructuring.

The studio also confirmed it is laying off 159 staff at its Finnish headquarters. CEO Mika Tammenkoski said the company would now focus on Merge Mansion and partially blamed an increasingly competitive market for the move.

Merge Mansion’s growth is said to have plateaued over the past few years, while Metacore’s investments in new games haven’t paid off.

The news comes a month after Metacore first announced its restructure and the planned acquisition of the studio by major investor Supercell, which would bring Merge Mansion into its live game portfolio.

Tammenkoski referred to the deal as a “potential acquisition”, however, and said negotiations were still underway.

"Painful decisions"

"These have been really difficult and painful decisions, and we fully understand the impact this has - not only on our employees, but also on the game industry that has not had it easy,” said Tammenkoski.

He added: “As I said to our team earlier: we are painfully aware that we are letting go of amazing talent. Each and every one of our Metacoreans were carefully recruited, contributed to our games and our culture and played an important part in building Metacore’s story. I’m grateful to every one of them and genuinely sorry that our journey will not continue together.

“We are doing our best to support these team members in finding their next opportunities, and believe that any company would be lucky to have them on their team. So recruiters, if you’re looking for skilled, ambitious and compassionate professionals in various different fields, please keep ex-Metacoreans on your radar.”