If you’re a fan of Crash Bandicoot or Spyro, you probably know Toys 4 Bob. The studio didn’t originally develop either of those franchises, but it did modernize them. Toys 4 Bob’s specialty for the past 5 years has been remastering classic games for modern consoles. Under its belt are Crash Bandicoot N. Sane Trilogy, Crash Bandicoot 4: It’s About Time, and Spyro Reignited Trilogy. However, Activision, Toys 4 Bob’s parent company, decided the studio would be better utilized working on Call of Duty: Warzone. Rumors of layoffs quickly spread regarding members of the Toys 4 Bob team. According to Activision, though, that part isn’t true.
Speaking to GamesIndustry.biz, an Activision representative said “Reports of layoffs at Toys for bob are incorrect. There has not been a reduction in personnel recently at the studio, the development team is operating fully and has a number of full-time job openings at this time. The studio is excited to continue supporting Crash Bandicoot 4: It’s About Time, and more recently provide additional development support to Call of Duty: Warzone.”
The announcement that Toys 4 Bob would be moving over to support Warzone came via Twitter. On April 29, the studio tweeted out that “Toys for Bob is proud to support development for Season 3 of Call of Duty: Warzone, and look forward to more to come.”
Activision’s history of moving companies around
Toys 4 Bob isn’t the first company that Activision has moved to focus on a new project. This past January, Activision Blizzard moved Vicarious Visions, the developer behind Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1+2, from the Activision side of the company to the Blizzard side. Effectively, Vicarious Visions is now part of Blizzard Entertainment. Like Toys 4 Bob, Vicarious Visions didn’t experience any layoffs, and the studio retains its headquarters in Albany, New York. However, in this new position, Vicarious Visions will not be able to develop new titles. Instead it will support other Blizzard studios.
Toys for Bob is proud to support development for Season 3 of Call of Duty #Warzone, and look forward to more to come. #LETSGO dev squads! #Verdansk84 pic.twitter.com/ERmFSWeaIk
— Toys For Bob (@ToysForBob) April 29, 2021
