Rovio Entertainment has announced the closure of its Copenhagen development studio, a move that follows the recent cancellation of its mobile project, Sonic Blitz. The decision marks a significant shift for the Finnish‑based publisher, which had hoped to leverage the iconic Sonic brand to capture a larger share of the mobile gaming market. According to a spokesperson speaking to Mobilegamer.biz, the redundancy process is still underway, making it difficult to provide an exact headcount of those affected.
Rough estimates suggest that around twenty staff members were directly involved in the Sonic Blitz effort. The spokesperson added that the choice to wind down operations in Denmark was "extremely difficult" and that the company is fully aware of the personal and professional impact on its employees, especially given the broader challenges that the games industry continues to face. To mitigate the disruption, Rovio has pledged a comprehensive transition package for any team members who cannot be reassigned to another internal project.
The package includes outplacement services, career‑coaching support, and wellbeing resources designed to help affected employees secure new roles as quickly as possible. Alexandre Pelletier‑Normand, who serves as both Rovio's chief executive officer and the chief operating officer of Sega West, explained the strategic rationale behind the closure. He said the company needed to "concentrate our bets both in terms of the games that we're making and where we're making them." In his view, the decision reflects a broader effort to focus resources on projects with the highest potential for long‑term success.
When Sonic Blitz was first introduced into the Sonic franchise, Pelletier‑Normand believed the title would be a strong addition that could satisfy the series' dedicated fan base. "That was the hypothesis," he noted.
"On paper, the concept looked great for mobile, but the real test is validation through player engagement and retention. Unfortunately, the retention metrics we saw were not strong enough to justify continuing the project." He continued, "I still believe there is a way to bring Sonic to more mobile players, but it turned out to be far more complicated than both Sega and Rovio anticipated. We remain very proud of the game and of what the team achieved, but it simply didn't work." Sonic Blitz entered a soft launch phase in 2025, targeting markets in the Philippines and Brazil. After a brief testing period, the title was pulled from those regions last month.
Rovio framed the shutdown as part of a "broader change" within the Copenhagen studio, emphasizing that the decision does not reflect a lack of passion, creativity, or community support that the development team poured into the project. The closure comes against the backdrop of Sega's acquisition of Rovio in 2023 for $776 million. Earlier this year, Sega disclosed a $200 million impairment charge related to the acquisition after the combined entity's profitability fell short of initial forecasts. Part of the shortfall has been attributed to difficulties integrating Rovio's Beacon technology—a location‑based service platform—into Sega's existing mobile portfolio.
Sega CEO Haruki Satomi explained that the operational and marketing approaches used by Rovio differ significantly from those traditionally employed by Sega. "New mobile games have yet to fully exploit Beacon," Satomi said, noting that the mismatch in strategies contributed to the under‑performance relative to expectations set before the acquisition.
In summary, the closure of Rovio's Copenhagen studio underscores the challenges of merging distinct corporate cultures and technology stacks, especially when attempting to revitalize a legacy brand like Sonic on a new platform. While the company expresses pride in the creative effort behind Sonic Blitz, the lack of sustainable player retention ultimately led to the project's termination and the difficult decision to shut down the studio. The affected staff will receive support to transition to new opportunities, and Rovio will continue to reassess its portfolio to focus on titles that align more closely with its strategic goals and market realities.