2023 was a year full of unfortunate layoffs from major studios to new ones that were recently formed. The trend continued until the end of the year and it seems to continue even now as League of Legends developers, Riot Games have just joined the list. The studio just announced that they have laid off a considerable number of employees globally.
The news was shared in a press release by CEO, Dylan Jadeja yesterday who also explained the reasoning and the other changes to some of the ongoing titles by Riot Games. The employees who will depart from Riot Games, as a result, are also announced to be taken care of if they’re not joining a new position immediately.
League of Legends Developers Riot Games Cuts 11% of Staff
CEO Dylan Jadeja made the unfortunate announcement about having cut about 530 roles globally, which comprises 11% of the studio’s total staff. Teams outside of core development were said to be most impacted in the latest round of layoffs. The layoffs come at a time when Riot Games’ Valorant and League of Legends continue to dominate the Esports competitions.
Jadeja mentioned that the studio hasn’t been making as much progress as expected after expanding, bringing in new talent, and changing the operating model. The overall expansion led to increased costs and hence the next step was to freeze hiring and control costs all around.
As a last step, the unfortunate decision was taken to lay off several staff as it was “a necessity” and also “to maintain a long-term focus for players“. As for those impacted, Jadeja revealed that they will be given 48 hours to discuss the decision with their Senior Leaders.
For those who are not moving into new positions elsewhere, Riot Games will be offering a minimum of six months of severance pay and a cash bonus of 100% of their Annual Performance Bonus from last year. They will also be given Health Benefits, including medical, dental, and vision if Riot Games provides healthcare in the impacted employee’s location.
Employees who have received Riot shares will get to keep them, subject to the company’s terms and conditions. They will also be given an alternate laptop after returning their official laptops, so it can be used to look for work.
As part of Career Support provided by Riot Games, they will get support while they look for a new role including networking, resume writing, career coaching, and review. As for emotional, legal, and financial concerns, Riot Games will support those impacted with 24/7 employee assistance programs.
Finally, those whose Visas are held as part of their employment with Riot Games will have them transitioned to non-employment visas in specific cases. Employees will also be given access to their official email addresses for a limited time, should they need to unlink the addresses from any subscriptions or delete any personal info, rather than have the access taken away immediately.
Changes to Riot Games Titles
Citing poor performance from the title as the reason, the 2020 title by Riot Games, Legends of Runeterra was announced to be affected as the team behind the game is being reduced and the point of focus is being shifted to the game’s PvE game mode, Path of Champions.
Riot Forge, which was a Riot Games’ effort to collaborate with third-party studios is also being shut down after the release of the upcoming title, Bandle Tale. There is a Town Hall planned for Thursday this week where more details about the changes in the studio’s portfolio will be shared.
Jadeja reiterated confidence in those who will continue to work at Riot Games mentioning that the studio will continue to plan for the long term by adding that the “vision for the future remains ambitious“.
What do you think of the layoff process at Riot Games? Let us know in the comments below!
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