After “approximately 20 years” at Call of Duty studio Treyarch, its former senior lead writer Craig Houston has been laid off. Houston is credited as a writer on World at War, Black Ops, Black Ops 2, Black Ops 3, and Black Ops Cold War, among other projects at the studio.
As spotted by Eurogamer, Houston posted on LinkedIn that he had been caught in a new wave of layoffs at Activision. “After approximately 20 years at Treyarch, I was one of those affected by recent layoffs,” Houston wrote.
“I am proud and privileged to have worked alongside so many talented people—many of whom will remain friends for life—on so many amazing projects. Thank you to all the fans for your enthusiasm, support, and kind words over the years,” he said.
Houston worked as one of the main writers for Treyarch’s Call of Duty campaigns starting with Call of Duty 3, while also serving as the main CoD Zombies writer ever since its inception with Call of Duty World at War in 2008. Houston worked on around a dozen CoD titles during his tenure, and he is even credited on Infinity Ward’s original Modern Warfare 3.
Stories of a greater layoff at Treyarch have not emerged yet, but from Houston’s post it seems apparent that the studio went through sweeping restructuring recently. How many people were affected remains unclear, but given XBOX’s stated goal to downsize much of its subsidiaries I wouldn’t be surprised to see dozens if not hundreds let go.
This could be part of a much greater and still developing story, and we will update it with additional information as it becomes available.
