1047 Games layoffs hit third round in 13 months weeks after Empulse launch
Summary
Third 1047 Games layoff wave in 13 months confirmed via LinkedIn posts from senior staff
Cuts land less than a month after Empulse ships, the studio's pivot title post-Splitgate 2 rebuild
Pattern exposes a pandemic-era $1.5B valuation and $100M+ raise funding headcount current titles cannot sustain
"As of the end of this week, it will be my last day at 1047 Games due to the third wave of studio layoffs"
01
Cuts track product milestones, not calendar cycles
June 2025: first disclosed cut, a "small group" of employees
July 2025: second round follows Splitgate shutdown and Splitgate 2 delay after CEO admitted launch was "too early"
July 2026: third round hits within weeks of Empulse shipping
Each round follows a product milestone, indicating headcount scaled for production peaks not live-ops
"We had ambitious goals with Splitgate 2, and in our excitement to share it with you, we bit off more than we could chew"
02
$1.5B valuation built a studio three titles cannot justify
Splitgate open beta hit 13M downloads in 2021, triggering a $100M+ raise at $1.5B valuation
That capital fueled hiring now being unwound across three separate reduction events
Proulx's stated ambition: Splitgate 2 exceeding 200,000 concurrent players "in years from now"
Long-horizon target collides with short-term burn visible in repeated post-launch cuts
03
Senior departures signal retention risk beyond the headcount number
Director of QA, associate art director, and community specialist exiting simultaneously strips cross-functional leadership
Departures land exactly when Empulse needs live support and community management
Associate art director joined in 2025, meaning the studio hired mid-cycle while cutting - classic runway mismanagement
"A bunch of us, 'the crew' aboard the 1047 train, are getting off on this post-Empulse station"
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