Tencent Holdings’ subsidiary Riot Games revealed plans to undertake significant workforce reductions, affecting approximately 11 percent of its global staff, totaling 530 employees. The decision, communicated in a blog post that included a letter to employees from CEO Dylan Jadeja, reflects the company’s strategic restructuring efforts.
Riot Games, headquartered in Los Angeles and renowned for titles like “League of Legends,” outlined that the layoffs would predominantly impact teams outside of core development. The move comes as digital game publishers confront challenges in expanding their audience, with consumers delaying purchases of costly titles amid rising inflation. In a similar vein, Electronic Arts took measures last year, cutting 6 percent of its staff and downsizing office space.
In his letter to employees, Dylan Jadeja acknowledged the need for a more focused approach, stating, “Today, we’re a company without a sharp enough focus, and simply put, we have too many things underway. Some of the significant investments we’ve made aren’t paying off the way we expected them to. Our costs have grown to the point where they’re unsustainable.”
The restructuring aims to streamline operations and enable Riot Games to concentrate on its core portfolio of live games, including “League of Legends,” “Valorant,” “Teamfight Tactics,” and “Wild Rift,” as detailed in a separate blog post by Dylan Jadeja and co-founder Marc Merrill.
Riot Games will discontinue new game development under “Riot Forge” after the upcoming release of Bandle Tale: A League of Legends Story. Riot Games will implement reductions in staff and features in “Legends of Runeterra.” The company seeks to optimize its resources and refocus efforts on its most successful and sustainable ventures.
It is noteworthy that Tencent, which acquired a majority stake in Riot Games in 2011, also holds stakes in other prominent U.S. video game developers, including Epic Games, Reuters news report said. The restructuring by Riot Games aligns with the industry’s ongoing efforts to adapt to changing market dynamics and ensure sustained growth in an ever-evolving digital gaming landscape.
