The division in Sony responsible for online games is firing 205 employees and cancelling “The Agency”.

Sony’s online division, responsible for the creation of the company’s mass online games, is downsizing. During the weekend it was reported that Sony fired 205 employees and cancelled one of the most curious and promising games it’s been working on, the mass espionage game “The Agency”.

According to the announcement by a Sony spokesperson, this is part of a “strategic decision aimed at lowering costs and making the work force more efficient”. Employees were fired from the Denver, Seattle and Tucson branches.

The game that was cancelled, “The Agency”, was introduced at the time of the PS3 launch and remained over the years, one of the most curious promises: a mass espionage game in which the players collaborate to get intel from other groups of players in real time.

Since it was first introduced, no new details have been given about the curious game, and many industry rumors warned that the chances this ambitious project will see daylight are slim.

Sony’s online division issued games by 1997 and focused over the years on issuing mass games. In 1999 it released its first hit “EverQuest”, one of the most successful mass games before the release of”World of Warcraft”.

Recently the company launched the mass game “DC Universe Online” – a game occurring in a comics company world which allows its players to play superheroes joining Superman and Batman in an attempt to save the world. The game is the first serious mass game to be released for the PS3 console.

Now, with the reduced work force and no worries about “The Agency”, the division is focusing on two games that are expected to be released in the coming years: a new “EverQuest” game and a new “PlanetSide” game.

“The strategic decision to optimize the development work force will help the company remain a world leader when it comes to mass games, to continue and make entertaining games for players of all ages and continue to serve the 20 million players registered on the company’s servers in the last year”, said Sony’s spokesperson. It’s a shame that for all this to happen 205 people had to lose their jobs.