In case you haven't been paying attention, the world's economies have hit a bit of a rough patch lately. Day after day we get news about one company or another that is being sold off, bought out, or downsizing. Contrary to what many industry optimists will tell you, video games are not necessarily recession-proof. While game retailers have seen increased sales and profits versus last year, smaller game developers and publishers (see: NCsoft, Midway, Eidos, et al) are having a hard time keeping the lights on and the doors open. It would appear that the big companies are starting to feel the effects too.

A report from the BBC this morning says that electronics mega-giant Sony plans to eliminate 5% of its workforce in its electronics division and 10% of its manufacturing sites by April of 2010. That translates to roughly 8,000 jobs. Sony made the decision to reduce its workforce after a report from the Japanese Cabinet Office announced that the economy of that nation had shrunk by 1.8% and not the 0.4% the Office had predicted.

There is no word as to what specific plants will be closed, nor which areas of the company will be affected by the layoffs. So you can rest assured that, at least for today, you'll still be able to get all the PS3s and PSPs your heart desires.

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