UPDATE: The Day the Music Died at Neversoft?

UPDATE: Activision has confirmed the layoffs at developers Neversoft and Radical Entertainment. The company is also closing Luxoflux (Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen).

IGN recieved a statement from the company that says the layoffs are due to the company putting out fewer games in the coming year. There has been no confirmation yet that the next Guitar Hero will be Neversoft's last.

ORIGINAL STORY: Guitar Hero series developer Neversoft is facing layoffs, including some team members working on the next Guitar Hero title. Is this the developer's last game with the series?

Website bingegamer.net says it has sources within Neversoft and Activision who state that Guitar Hero 6 will be the last game in the franchise the developer works on, and that it's being handed over to Activision's internal studio Vicarious Visions. Vicarious Visions seems to be the publisher's go-to studio for ports of established franchises. The developer currently handles the Wii and DS versions of the Guitar/Band Hero franchises.

Layoffs are reportedly occurring at Neversoft spanning different projects, and some of the Guitar Hero 6 team will be laid off when the game ships. How these layoffs affect Neversoft's future projects is unknown. There are also layoffs happening at another Activision studio – Radical Entertainment (Prototype).

We contacted Activision for a comment, and will update you if the company has anything to say on the matter.