Payday 3 developer Starbreeze has removed its CEO following the game’s lackluster launch and poor sales. In a notice to investors, the company announced that its board member Juergen Goeldner will temporarily replace ousted CEO Tobias Sjögren until a permanent appointment is made. Goeldner previously led Focus Home Interactive.
Payday 3 sales failed to meet expectations
Despite launching day-one on Xbox Game Pass alongside the PS5 and PC, Payday 3 failed to attract enough players and subsequently bombed commercially. Two months after its launch in September 2023, Starbreeze announced that Payday 3 failed to meet expectations.
“The company has a clear strategy centered around creating attractive games on our own and licensed IPs,” reads a note to investors. “The board’s consolidated assessment is that the execution of strategy needs a different leadership. Juergen Goeldner has been part of the board since 2023 and, with over 40 years of industry experience, is a strong interim solution.”
Sjögren had been leading Starbreeze for three years at the time of his ousting, with the board acknowledging that he had been thrown into a challenging role. “Tobias took over the helm of Starbreeze in a challenging phase of its journey and we wish him well in his future endeavors,” the company said.
