Red Dead Redemption is a great game, but it suffered through a troubled development cycle. Originally slated to be released last fall, the game was delayed and there were numerous reports that employees at Rockstar's San Diego studio were unhappy with the working conditions. Now it looks like many of those people won't have to worry about the conditions anymore.

Rockstar has confirmed that, now that RDR is out, approximately 40 staff members are being cut from the San Diego team, which previously consisted of around 180 employees.

"As is typical with game development, our team sizes have always fluctuated over the course of the development cycle," studio manager Steve Martin told Kotaku. "As Rockstar San Diego transitions from the launch of Red Dead Redemption onto future projects, we are realigning our resources in order to continue to develop games as effectively as possible. We are ensuring that all employees who are affected by these changes are being treated with care."

Miller went on to say that the staff remaining at the studio are currently working on downloadable content for the game, and that there are currently no announcements to make with regard to a sequel.

Originally founded in 1984 as Angel Studios, the San Diego branch of Rockstar has worked extensively on the Midnight Club street racing series, in addition to the Red Dead series. The studio also developed the surprise hit Rockstar Games Presents Table Tennis.