According to Kotaku, company president Randy Pitchford has stated that the layoffs were related to the company’s production cycles: "Over the last six weeks, we’ve been adjusting our internal strategy to move from being about opportunity, ambition and growth to a strategy that is oriented towards quality, focus and performance. A number of recent tactical decisions here are a reflection of this new commitment and strategy. The timing of these tactical decisions relates more to natural manoeuvring that all studios should only consider after they finish a big effort than anything else."
The status of Aliens: Colonial Marines remains unclear, with Pitchford only stating that ‘halted’ would be an inaccurate description. Pitchford also stated that, contrary to what is normally associated with mass-layoffs, the company is currently hiring.
Aliens: Colonial Marines was scheduled for a late 2008 release, but had recently slipped to an unconfirmed date in 2009.