Bethesda Says id Software Layoffs Are Normal

id Software is laying off employees, but it's nothing out of the ordinary, claims Bethesda.

On Tuesday Ubisoft Toronto level artist Adam Bromell confirmed that id Software was currently laying off employees, and that perhaps more layoffs would come soon. The news arrives after the recent release of the studio's first new IP in decades, Rage, which initially suffered technical issues on both the PC and console platforms.

But parent company Bethesda Softworks swooped in and explained the situation before the rumor mill began churning too quickly, claiming that it's common practice. "As part of its standard business practice, id regularly evaluates staffing to ensure it has a workforce that meets the needs of the studio," Bethesda said in a statement. "As part of that process, some id employees were recently let go."

That said, all is well in the house of id, so don't fret. Even more, the studio is still recruiting and hiring qualified developers, and says that "development work on future id titles continues unabated." id Software is reportedly working on additional content for Rage while continuing to slowly bake Doom 4 in the oven, a process which has thus far taken four years.

It's apparently not uncommon for a studio to hire on a huge load of contractors to work on a specific game, and then terminate their contract after the title is released. IndustryGamers calls Rage "commercially unsuccessful," but many fans may disagree. The game actually pulled in slightly above-average scores, ranking an 82-percent average for the Xbox 360, an 81-percent for the PlayStation 3, and a 78-percent on the PC.