Electronic Arts closes Japan office as part of mass layoffs
Update: Russian division also appears to be shuttering with operations moving to larger, regional office
EA has confirmed it has closed the Japanese office that handled its operations in that market.
Famitsu reports that the closure is part of the mass layoffs announced yesterday, which will see 350 people around the world made redundant.
In the initial announcement, CEO Andrew Wilson said the publisher would be decreasing its presence in both Japan and Russia, but it seems that means cutting it entirely from the former.
There is no word on how many staff this affects, or whether EA's Russia office will follow suit.
In a statement, the publisher insisted Japan was still an important market for the company and pledged to continue supporting its games in the region.
EA also thanked the affected employees for their contribution to the company and promised to look into other positions within the country or ways in which it can help them find employment elsewhere in the games industry.
"These are important but very hard decisions, and we do not take them lightly," said Wilson in his statement yesterday.
"We are friends and colleagues at EA, we appreciate and value everyone's contributions, and we are doing everything we can to ensure we are looking after our people to help them through this period to find their next opportunity. This is our top priority."
Update: EA's Russian division will similarly be shutting down.
Russian media site Kanobu reports (via Google Translate) that EA's Moscow office will shut down, with projects previously centered in Russia moving to the company's larger Eastern European regional office. Multiple employees from Moscow will be brought to the regional office as a part of the transition.
EA has since confirmed to GamesIndustry.biz that the Moscow office will indeed close as reported, but that this does not represent a diminishing of services or localizations in the region.
Additional reporting by Rebekah Valentine.