Epic Games, best known for Fortnite, announced Tuesday it would lay off more than 1,000 employees as part of cost-saving measures.
SEATTLE — Epic Games, the game developer and publisher known for Fortnite and the 3D creation tool Unreal Engine used across the industry to develop titles, announced Tuesday it would lay off more than 1,000 employee on Friday, March 27.
According to a Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) from Washington state’s Employment Security Department, about 82 of those employees are in the state.
In a press release, the company said the layoffs are part of more than $500 million in cost-saving measures. The company said its largest title, Fortnite, saw a drop in engagement in 2025. Players have recently criticized the publisher’s decision to change the pricing of its in-game currency while simultaneously lowering the amount players receive.
“The downturn in Fortnite engagement that started in 2025 means we’re spending significantly more than we’re making, and we have to make major cuts to keep the company funded,” Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney said in an email to employees. “Some of the challenges we’re facing are industrywide: slower growth, weaker spending and tougher cost economics; current consoles selling less than the last generation; and games competing for time against other increasingly engaging forms of entertainment.”
With companies like Amazon recently tying layoffs to artificial intelligence, Sweeney said Epic’s layoffs are not tied to the technology.
“To the extent [AI] improves productivity, we want to have as many awesome developers developing great content and tech as we can,” Sweeney said.
Sweeney said affected employees will receive a severance package that includes “at least four months of base pay, with more based on tenure,” plus extended health care coverage.