Mafia II studio loses 40 staff

Take-Two delivered a batch of "strictly business" news to Mafia II developer 2K Czech today. The publisher has confirmed for GameSpot that it has laid off about 40 staff across its two studios in the Czech Republic at Brno and Prague, with the former outfit suffering the majority of the cuts.

"2K Czech has realigned its resources to streamline the development process, reduce costs, and maximize studio performance," Take-Two said in a statement. "This will result in the elimination of approximately 40 positions and primarily impact the 2K Czech studio in Brno. While this was a difficult decision, we believe it will benefit the studio in the long term."

The publisher went on to note that the staff cuts will not have an impact on the studio's current development plans. "Our goal to create world-class video game titles remains unchanged," Take-Two continued.

Founded in 1997 under the Illusion Softworks moniker, 2K Czech was picked up by Take-Two in 2007. Beyond the Mafia franchise, 2K Czech is also known for its work on the Hidden & Dangerous series and Vietcong. The studio's most recent project, Top Spin 4, achieved critical acclaim upon its release for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 in March 2011. A Wii edition fared considerably worse with critics.