Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney announced the layoff of about 1,000 employees due to «declining player activity in Fortnite.» The company is cutting costs by $500 million and closing a number of game modes.
Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney announced the layoff of about 1,000 employees due to «declining player activity in Fortnite.» The company is cutting costs by $500 million and closing a number of game modes.
«Today we are laying off over 1,000 Epic employees. I am sorry that we are in this situation again. The decline in player activity in Fortnite, which began in 2025, means that we are spending significantly more than we earn, and we are having to make serious cuts to ensure the company’s funding», Sweeney said in the statement.
He noted that Epic Games is also cutting more than $500 million in marketing and freelance costs. The company’s CEO assured that the cuts are not related to AI.
According to Sweeney, the entire gaming industry is in a difficult situation due to slowing growth, declining costs, and difficult economic factors. In addition, current consoles are selling worse than previous-generation consoles, and games are competing for players' time with other forms of entertainment.
«This isn’t the first time we’ve been in this situation. Epic has weathered the upheavals of the 1990s, moving from 2D to 3D with Unreal 1; the 2000s, making console games with Gears of War; and 2012, moving into online games with Paragon and Fortnite. Each time, we’ve rebuilt our foundations and reclaimed a new leadership position,» said Tim Sweeney.
Employees affected by the reduction will receive severance pay, which includes at least four months of base salary, as well as additional benefits depending on length of service.
Fortnite developers also published a message stating that they will be closing three game modes: Rocket Racing, Ballistic, and Festival Battle Stage .
«We’ve created many modes for Fortnite, but in some cases we haven’t been able to make them interesting enough to attract and retain a large audience of players,» the statement said.
Rocket Racing will be available until October 2026, while Ballistic and Festival Battle Stage will be shut down on April 16th with Fortnite update 40.20. It is likely that many of the laid-off employees worked in these departments.
Epic recently raised the price of Fortnite’s in-game currency, V-Bucks. Previously, 1,000 V-Bucks cost $8.99, but now players get just 800 V-Bucks for the same amount. «The costs of supporting Fortnite have increased significantly, and we’re raising prices to help pay the bills,» the developers said.
