A round of GameStop layoffs has apparently begun, and this time, it seems to be the company's blockchain division that's in the crosshairs. Supposedly, six GameStop software engineers have been laid off, and although they may not be the only ones, employee posts on social media suggest the blockchain division is being hit hard.
According to Axios' Brady Dale, a "source within the company" says the team currently responsible for GameStop's blockchain wallet has been "heavily impacted" (Axios' wording, not the source's). Said wallet would allow you to store cryptocurrency and use it to engage with the GameStop NFT marketplace, which was launched back in October.
Dale goes on to say that "at least six software engineers" have posted on LinkedIn to claim they've been let go from GameStop, with one engineer pointing to layoffs happening in the worlds of "E-commerce Product and Engineers...Lots of them". Evidently, the layoffs aren't constrained to just the NFT wallet division.
While there's been no official statement from GameStop, this decision could have been made due to the continuing decline of NFTs, with the market falling despite various companies' enthusiasm toward blockchain technology. It's possible GameStop is looking to cut its losses, although again, without an official statement, it's hard to say.
The gaming world continues to grapple with NFTs and blockchain technology. Companies like Square Enix are going all-in on NFT technology, but blockchain scams still abound thanks to the decentralized nature of the system, and various indie developers and storefronts have also declared their opposition to NFTs and blockchain tech on the whole.
It remains to be seen what GameStop's strategy will be when it comes to blockchain tech in the future. For now, the NFT marketplace remains operational, and GameStop's NFT Twitter account is still very much active. However, if this report about blockchain layoffs is to be believed, there may be a significant pullback in that area from GameStop soon. Stay tuned for more.
