Google's cloud-gaming service Stadia said in a blog post that it has decided to shut down its Stadia Games and Entertainment (SG&E) internal game development service and team due to the high costs related to game development. Stadia will instead focus on building Stadia technology and deepening its business partnerships. The service, Google's first ever dedicated game studios, closes 1.5 year after launch.
Jade Raymond, the executive in charge of Stadia, will leave Google to pursue other opportunities. Over the coming months, most of the team will move on to new roles. The closure will affect over 150 employees headquartered in both Montreal and Los Angeles, according to ArsTechnica. Google did not officially confirm the number.
Stadia gamers can continue playing all games on Stadia and Stadia Pro, and Stadia will continue to bring new titles from third parties to the platform.
Rival Amazon also encountered difficulties in the game development segment. The company discontinued its Crucible free-to-play multiplayer shooter in October 2020, before its full release, as it didn’t see a healthy, sustainable future ahead for it. Crucible was Amazon's major PC game.
