EA is reportedly laying off even more Apex Legends staff, with reports indicating the QA team in the United Kingdom is being shut down.
2024 has been a relentless year for layoffs at EA already, and Apex Legends has already taken a hit after an unspecified number of layoffs in March—with even more layoffs now being reported less than a month later.
Insider Gaming reports that EA informed staff members on Wednesday (April 10) that the UK QA team was being shut down. The initial report indicated around 50 people would lose their jobs, though an update says the number is “likely closer to 40.”
News of the layoffs is said to have caused surprise, with the workers being called into a “business update” Zoom call where they were told their contracts would not be renewed—with managers and project leads bizarrely left unaware of the situation.
The report is eerily similar to previous layoffs of Apex Legends quality assurance testers in February, where over 100 staff, both contractors and full-time employees, were caught off guard in a surprise Zoom call.
Apex Legends staff affected by the latest round of layoffs are now scrambling to find new roles, with some of the contracts expiring in just a matter of weeks.
It’s not clear how the layoffs will impact Apex Legends moving forward in what could be a big year for the Respawn title, with an announcement in March informing players that the game would be “expanding beyond the traditional battle royale universe.”
With such a significant number of layoffs at Apex Legends in 2024, particularly among the QA team, many players are concerned about the state of the game—particularly after pro players were hacked live during the ALGS regional finals last month.
Players have also been affected by a bug introduced in the April Fools Day patch that saw many losing all their progress, with Respawn responding by giving away free packs to all Apex Legends players this week.
