'Scribblenauts: Fighting Words' News & Update: Warner Bros Cancelled The Game, Developer Lays Off Employees

Game developer 5th Cell has laid off some of its employees because a game currently in development has been cancelled.

“Scribblenauts: Fighting Words,” the iOS adaptation of “Scribblenauts” has been cancelled by Warner Bros, reports IGN. As a result, 45 of 5th Cell's employees that included game designers and programmers have been laid off.

"Layoffs aren't something we take lightly and we'd like to thank all our employees for the hard work and dedication over the years," reads a statement from 5th Cell.

Although the company itself is not shutting down, its current focus is to help its staff go through the transition towards other “external opportunities.”

5th Cell CEO Jeremiah Slaczka said that the game's cancellation happened so fast.

"WB cancelled [“Scribblenauts: Fighting Words”] so we had to lay off the staff," Slaczka told Polygon. "It happened so quick we're not sure what the plans are going forward yet."

Tim Borelli, former lead programmer for 5th Cell, posted several tweets in regards to the layoffs.

First, Borelli mentioned that the company was shutting down, and asked if anybody was interested in looking for “artists, programmers, designers, QA, IT, and more.”

Next, he tweeted that he was part of the first batch of people who were laid off, noting that the company was shutting down as he picked up his belongings.

Apparently, this is sad news.

5th Cell is a game company focusing on mobile games, and was founded in 2003. Their biggest hit, the original “Scribblenauts,” was released for the Nintendo DS in 2009. It received a follow-up, “Super Scribblenauts,” which was released in 2010.

“Scribblenauts: Fighting Words” appeared to be the game ported to iOS devices.

Those interested in hiring former 5th Cell employees should contact the developer at jobs@5thcell.com.