Epic Games has confirmed plans to cut more than 1,000 jobs, roughly a fifth of its workforce, and reduce costs by $500 million following a downturn in engagement with its flagship title Fortnite.
The gaming company said the layoffs leave it with just over 4,000 employees. In a memo to staff, chief executive Tim Sweeney said the fall in Fortnite engagement that began in 2025 meant the firm was spending significantly more than it was making, forcing major cuts to keep the company funded.
Mr Sweeney attributed the difficulties to both company-specific issues and broader industry pressures, including slower growth, weaker consumer spending, tougher cost economics, and current-generation consoles selling less well than their predecessors. He also noted that games are competing for time against increasingly engaging forms of entertainment.
The redundancies follow a $1.5 billion investment by Disney in February 2024, which gave the media giant a minority stake in the company. Epic previously cut around 830 jobs in September 2023, equivalent to 16% of its workforce at the time.
