In a lengthy statement to staff issued late Monday, CEO
A note to customers said, “This isn’t to appease shareholders or to hit a quarterly earnings number—it’s a necessity.”
The
“Today we’re a company without a sharp enough focus, and simply put, we have too many things underway. Some of the investments we’ve made aren’t paying off the way we expected them to,” the statement said.
“To all the Rioters who are being laid off, we are deeply sorry that it has come to this,” it said.
Riot Games said it will pay staff who are laid off six months of salary at a minimum, cash bonuses and other benefits.
It said it would offer access to job placement services, counseling and visa support for staff who were working with visas. Those laid off can also request use of a laptop if needed, the company said.
Job cuts have been taking a toll on workers across various industries — including retail, tech, media and hospitality — over the last few years. In recent months, layoffs have been announced at Google,
Many have been in the tech sector, which hired heavily during the pandemic, when people whiled away time stuck at home playing games online.
Riot Games sponsors the
The company said it would make changes to its Legends of Runeterra to “move it to sustainability” and reduce the staff working on that team, shifting its focus to its “Path of Champions." “Riot Forge” will be discontinued after the upcoming release of “Bandle Tale,” it said.
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