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'Fruit Ninja.' Halfbrick Studios/Newsroom

Halfbrick Studios, the creator of the mega-successful mobile game “Fruit Ninja,” has reportedly laid off approximately half of its staff members. The news comes after reported struggles “to replicate” the success of the aforementioned game and “Jetpack Joyride.”

Halfbrick, a game studio based in Brisbane, Australia, is widely known for developing what is perhaps one of the most successful mobile games ever. “Fruit Ninja” has reportedly enjoyed more than 1 billion downloads and comes with microtransactions for loyal players.

The news of the layoff comes from CNET, which cites multiple sources as saying that Halfbrick has “made up to 30 staff members redundant.” According to the same report, the studio’s Brisbane office now has roughly 30 employees remaining. CNET has reached out to the Aussie developer for comments but has not yet received any.

The same report points at the struggle of the company to come up with new products while supporting “Fruit Ninja” and “Jetpack Joyride” at the same time. The remaining staff members are now said to be focusing on these current games.

It can be remembered that in 2015, Halfbrick had to let go of two of its major designers, Layton Hawkes and Ryan Langley. Kotaku cites “a shift in approach” within the studio, a strategy that reportedly left the company without a designer during that time.

Halfbrick CEO Shainiel Deo had even told Kotaku that the developer planned to “empower everyone in our teams to contribute to design rather than concentrate design control in the hands of a few.” Deo added, “Great ideas can come from anywhere and we want to create an environment that fosters this notion.” The statement ended with a promise that Halfbrick is set to release new games and to announce “exciting partnerships on the horizon.”

Back in 2016, The Hollywood Reporter broke the news that a film version of “Fruit Ninja” is in the works.