Well, this is never a good way to start off a Friday morning.

After seeing its staff reduced to 40 employees after an earlier round of layoffs this year, Black Rock Studio, the developer behind such acclaimed racers as Split/Second and Pure, will soon close altogether, according to an official statement by Disney Interactive posted by Eurogamer.

The statement confirms that after the studio's latest project failed to garner a green light from the publisher, Disney informed the team of the decision to close.

As of this moment the studio remains open, as Disney has enacted a "consultation process" which, under U.K. law, signals an impending closure of a company. The process evidently takes 90 days.

After the previous round of layoffs, two new studios sprang forth from former heads at the company, including Split/Second director Nick Baynes' Roundcube Entertainment, and ShortRound Games, which was founded by four former department heads at the company.

Here's hoping the affected Black Rock employees find new work soon, either with their former coworkers, or elsewhere.