Video game companies are seemingly facing difficult times. The latest to lay off employees is Kunos Simulazioni’s parent company Digital Bros – but fans of Assetto Corsa and Assetto Corsa Competizione do not need to worry.
After reviewing its current projects and structure, Digital Bros issued a press release announcing “an expected workforce reduction of approximately 30%.” This mostly concerns the studios, according to the release. One of the studios under the Digital Bros umbrella (via 505 Games): Kunos Simulazioni.
However, sim racers who enjoy AC as well as ACC and are looking forward to Assetto Corsa 2 in 2024 do not need to panic. According to information available to OverTake, Kunos is not affected by the layoffs. And this should not come as a surprise.
Digital Bros’ portfolio includes popular titles like Death Stranding, Payday 2 or Sniper Elite III in the “premium games” category (read: paid titles), the Assetto Corsa franchise is arguably the most important pillar of the company’s revenue. This is very much evident in the financial Interim Report relased on September 30.
Digital Bros: Assetto Corsa With “Outstanding Performance”
The release notes “the outstanding performance of different versions of Assetto Corsa.” Digital Bros gross revenue from July 1 to September 30 was €20,225 million. The premium games segment generated roughly €15 million, or 74.3% of the company’s gross revenue.
Without the Assetto Corsa franchise, a significant chunk of this revenue would be amiss. The racing simulators alone “generated Euro 5.3 million revenue in the reporting period.” In simpler terms: AC and ACC were responsible for about a quarter of Digital Bros total earnings. Plus, about a third in the premium games sector come from the franchise.
As a result, reducing the Kunos workforce would have been a rather odd strategy. Indeed, Digital Bros is “cautiously optimistic about its long-term publishing plans, which will involve the release of the sequels of Assetto Corsa and Control.”
Are you surprised by the strong performance of the Assetto Corsa franchise? How much are you looking forward to AC2? Let us know on Twitter @OverTake_gg or in the comments below!
