Six months after the disastrous launch of Payday 3, Starbreeze CEO is out as the company says it needs 'different leadership' for the future

Gaming IndustryPayday 3Six months after the disastrous launch of Payday 3, Starbreeze CEO is out as the company says it needs ‘different leadership’ for the futureWhen you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.

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(Image credit: Starbreeze Studios)

Payday 3 trailer still

Starbreeze CEO Tobias Sjögren has been shown the door, as the board of directors has decided that it is in need of “different leadership” to take the company forward. The move comes just six months after the catastrophic launch of struggling heist-shooterPayday 3.

Sjögren became acting CEO of Starbreeze in October 2020 following the resignation of then-CEO Mikael Nermark, and was appointed to the position permanently in March 2021. Three years later, he’s very suddenly out, and while a specific reason for his ouster was given it sure doesn’t sound like the Starbreeze board of directors was happy with how things have been going.

“The company has a clear strategy centered around creating attractive games on our own and licensed IPs,” Starbreeze chairman Torgny Hellström said in apress release(viaGame Developer). “The board’s consolidated assessment is that the execution of strategy needs a different leadership.”

Hellström thanked Sjögren “for his achievements during the past three years,” and of course wished him well in his future endeavors, as one does.

Sjögren acknowledged in February that “Payday 3’s sales and player activity are currently atsignificantly lower levels than we would like,” and the numbers tell the tale: Steam Charts indicates thatPayday 3’speak concurrent player count over the past 24 hours was just 353, compared to more than 31,000 forPayday 2. An effort to turn things around was announced in February, but clearly it was too little, too late to save his job.

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