Epic Games is laying off a huge chunk of its workforce today as part of a massive internal move to save money and Fall Guys developer Mediatonic is among the most affected. According to multiple reports and several of the impacted employees, Mediatonic has been “decimated” by this cut.
On Twitter and other social media platforms, developers who have spent years working on the game-show battle royale title and other projects at Mediatonic have confirmed they have been laid off by Epic, who acquired the London-based studio in March 2021.
Some reports have claimed the entire London studio has been shuttered, but no Mediatonic employee has confirmed this information. They have, however, been sharing a reorganized Mediatonic logo that says “Decimation.”
Bloomberg reporter Jason Schreier, who originally broke the news on Epic’s layoffs today, said Mediatonic was “hit very hard” but not completely shut down. Kotaku senior reporter Ethan Gach has also shared that an Epic spokesperson has called reports of the Fall Guys studio being cut entirely “false” and noted that Epic will continue to invest in the title.
This means that while Fall Guys is still in a very uncertain place with a heavily reduced workforce, the game isn’t currently in danger of being sunset just days after its latest major update.
Epic said it was laying off 16 percent of its workforce, around 830 people total, along with 250 people leaving as Epic divests its interests in Bandcamp and SuperAwesome. Prior to this news, Mediatonic was listed as having 287 employees on LinkedIn.
“For a while now, we’ve been spending way more money than we earn, investing in the next evolution of Epic and growing Fortnite as a metaverse-inspired ecosystem for creators,” Epic CEO Tim Sweeney said in a memo. “I had long been optimistic that we could power through this transition without layoffs, but in retrospect I see that this was unrealistic.”
According to Sweeney, Epic cutting these jobs is a “terrible experience for all” and comes as the next step in the company’s plans to reduce costs outside of “core development”—following previous moves to cut spending in areas like marketing. His statements are being heavily criticized, however, as he ends his memo by saying Epic is “OK with the schedule tradeoff” of potentially understaffing some teams if it means the company can remain profitable and become “a leading metaverse company.”
Impacted employees are set to receive six months of base pay and additional healthcare and benefits as part of a severance package.
This is just the latest in a string of massive layoffs or restructuring hitting the gaming space at large companies such as Epic, Embracer Group, and Sega.
Update Sept. 28 4:35pm CT: Epic responded to Dot Esports’ request for comment, completely denying reports that the entire Mediatonic studio has been laid off.
“The reports are false. Mediatonic’s work on Fall Guys continues to be a company priority,” an Epic spokesperson said.
