Epic Games, the privately held developer behind Fortnite and Unreal Engine, confirmed on March 24 that it would cut more than 1,000 jobs, representing roughly 20% of its total workforce, according to a company spokeswoman cited by the New York Times.
CEO Tim Sweeney attributed the reductions to a sharp fall in Fortnite usage. The game, which generates revenue primarily through in-game cosmetic purchases, has faced slowing engagement despite billions in cumulative revenue. Epic also raised the price of V-Bucks, its in-game currency, according to TechCrunch, a move that may reflect efforts to offset volume declines with higher per-transaction yield.
The cuts are the second significant reduction in under two years. Epic shed 830 staff in September 2023, also citing Fortnite-related pressures. The back-to-back rounds suggest the structural headwinds are more than cyclical: live-service games that once looked like annuity businesses are proving vulnerable to audience fatigue and competition for player time.
Epic remains a significant force in the broader industry through Unreal Engine, which is widely licensed across gaming and increasingly in film and architecture. That business provides some revenue diversification, but the company's cost base was clearly built around Fortnite's peak engagement levels.
The announcement is the latest in a prolonged wave of gaming industry layoffs. Publishers and developers across the sector have announced staff reductions repeatedly over the past two years as pandemic-era player growth reverses and production costs remain elevated.
