On Monday, the League of Legends studio, Riot Games, announced a significant workforce reduction, eliminating approximately 530 roles globally, which constitutes about 11% of its total employees. The most substantial impact is expected to affect teams outside of core development. Riot emphasized its commitment to internal development, with a focus on supporting flagship titles such as League of Legends, Valorant, Teamfight Tactics, and Wild Rift.
“For most of our history, we’ve managed to avoid days like this, but this decision is critical for the future of Riot,” the company said in a statement. “This isn’t to appease shareholders or to hit a quarterly earnings number—it’s a necessity.
“Over the past few years, as Riot more than doubled in headcount, we spread our efforts across more and more projects without sharp enough razors to decide what players needed most.
“The adjustments we’re making aim to focus us on the areas that have the greatest impact on your experience while reducing investment on things that don’t.”
Legends of Runeterra, the collectible card game launched in 2020, will undergo downsizing in both its team and scope due to financial challenges faced since its launch.
Minutes ago, we shared an important update with Rioters about the future of Riot Games. Here’s what these changes mean for our games and what players can expect from us going forward: https://t.co/SPjvtANGdK pic.twitter.com/WGSr6fkvjp
— Riot Games (@riotgames) January 22, 2024
Riot Games will also discontinue its third-party publishing label, ‘Riot Forge,’ following the release of the upcoming title Bandle Tale: A League of Legends Story. This decision reflects a strategic shift to concentrate efforts on ambitious internal projects. The gaming industry witnessed widespread job losses in 2023, with an estimated 9,000 layoffs, and indications suggest that the trend continues into the current year.
“Despite critical achievements and the role it’s played in helping to build out the world of Runeterra, LoR has faced financial challenges since launch, costing significantly more to develop and support than it generates,” the company said.
“Forge was an experiment to see what would happen when Rioters partnered with their favorite indie devs and let them loose on Runeterra with their unique viewpoints, styles, and expertise,” the company said.
“We’re proud of what we’ve done together to bring these stories to life, but it’s time to refocus our efforts on the ambitious projects underway internally at Riot.”
According to a GDC survey, approximately one-third of developers reported being affected by layoffs at their workplaces over a 12-month period. Of the 3,000 developers surveyed, 35% experienced layoffs, with 7% personally laid off, 17% reporting colleagues in their department being laid off, and 11% noting layoffs in other teams or departments.
