SUMMARY
- In the past year or two, big gaming companies like Bungie, EA, Epic Games, and Amazon Games have laid off many employees.
- The creator of well-known games like League of Legends and Valorant, Riot Games, has announced that it is laying off hundreds of workers.
In the last year or two, there has been a lot of news concerning layoffs in the video game business. Several of the largest brands in gaming, such as Bungie, Electronic Arts, Epic Games, and Amazon Games, have drastically lowered their employee numbers.
According to data from the Game Developers Conference, a sizable portion of developers have experienced layoffs in one form or another, and many are worried that their company may reduce staff in the upcoming year.
According to new data revealed by the Game Developers Conference organizers, about one-third of developers were impacted by job losses in 2023, either directly or indirectly, and the effects on the industry will be seen for months to come. This is a result of consumers cutting back on their gaming spending during a crisis in the cost of living and studios expanding too rapidly during the pandemic.
Riot Games to lay off employees
The creator of well-known games like League of Legends and Valorant, Riot Games, has announced that it is laying off hundreds of workers. Riot Games stated in a blog post that featured a message from CEO Dylan Jadeja to staff members that the online gaming firm intends to let off 530 workers, or around 11% of its workforce worldwide.
According to Los Angeles-based Riot Games, the teams that are not involved in core development will be most affected by the layoffs. “Today, we’re a company without a sharp enough focus, and simply put, we have too many things underway. Some of the significant investments we’ve made aren’t paying off the way we expected them to. Our costs have grown to the point where they’re unsustainable,” Jadeja stated.
The publisher attributed the change to ballooning expenses and risky investments that had not materialized in a memo to staff members. In addition, Riot will be able to focus on its library of live games, which includes League of Legends, Valorant, Teamfight Tactics, and Wild Rift, as per a separate blog post by Jadeja and co-founder Marc Merrill.
To make the layoff process less stress-free, Riot employees will get an email regarding their employment status. A calendar invitation to meet with their Senior Leader and People team partner to discuss the next actions will be sent to each Rioter whose job is or may be affected. According to Riot, these meetings will be held within the 48-hour window.
Assisting the laid-off employees
Jadeja also detailed the actions the company will take to support every one of the laid-off workers. In addition to a cash incentive equal to 100% of each employee’s individual 2023 Annual Performance incentive, Riot workers impacted by today’s layoffs will receive a minimum of six months’ severance compensation.
In addition, they will receive equity, health benefits equivalent to the duration of their severance pay, $1000 to cover costs that would typically fall under Riot’s Play Fund and Wellness Fund, career support, a laptop to help them find work if one isn’t available at home, 3 months of access to the Rioter Assistance Program, assistance with visas, and the ability to use their Riot email address for a limited time.
Riot’s recent announcement of layoffs comes after a disastrous 2023 marked by widespread layoffs in the gaming sector, affecting an estimated 9,500 jobs overall.
