Known for titles such as theÂNi No KuniandÂYokai Watchseries, developerLevel 5has long been known for making acclaimed RPGs for over two decades. While the company has brought its releases to regions around the world, recent developments regarding the company’s international offices suggest that Level 5 may solely release its titles in Japan in the future.In a report fromÂGamesIndustry.biz, details emerged that the North American division for developer Level 5 has all but ceased operations entirely, with the division of the company running on a “skeleton crew.” According to sources fromGamesIndustry.bizfamiliar with the situation, both Level 5 International America and Level 5 Abby–which oversee its operations in North America–had begun laying off members of their teams starting last year, with the offices running with bare minimum personnel since then for essential functions.
The report noted that at the moment, it’s unknown how many team members currently remain with Level 5’s North American operations, and that sources close to the studio detailed that no specific reasons were given for the layoffs. However, sources with the Abby office explained that they were “given every indication” that the office would be effectively shutting down, while other portions of the company were brought into the Japanese office.
For the most part, this news largely leaves an uncertain fate for Level 5’s upcoming and future projects releasing in the West.ÂGamesIndustry.biznoted that according to one source, the resulting layoffs from the North American offices means that were are “currently no plans” for future Level 5 releases to debut in regions other than Japan. The studio’s most recent western release wasÂSnack World: The Dungeon Crawl - Goldin February of this year, but beyond that there are no indications of other titles from the studio coming to the west.
Level 5 has not released any official statement or details regarding the report or the closure of the studios, but the studio’s social media presence in general has been quiet for some time. Theofficial Twitter account for the International America officelast tweeted in July of this year regarding a patch for its mobile titleLayton Brothers Mystery Room, with the most recent tweet before that coming from October 2018.
