Riot Games, the studio behind League of Legends, has announced a series of layoffs affecting its League of Legends PC development team, alongside plans for future expansion.

The news was delivered by Riot Games co-founder Marc Merrill in a statement posted to X: “This isn't about reducing headcount to save money. It's about making sure we have the right expertise,” Merril wrote.

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“While team effectiveness is more important than team size, the League team will eventually be even larger than it is today as we develop the next phase of League,” he added. “For Rioters who are laid off, we're supporting them with a severance package that includes a minimum of six months’ pay, annual bonus, job placement assistance, health coverage and more.”

The layoffs impacted 27 developers from the League of Legends team and five employees from Riot's publishing division.

Merrill also reiterated that focusing on team efficiency is more important than increasing its size. "If we're solving the wrong problems, more resources won't fix it. It's about building smarter and healthier, not just bigger.”

Layoffs During League's 15th Anniversary

The layoffs come during the 15th anniversary of League of Legends, which Merrill referenced briefly in his post, noting the company's intention to keep the game successful for the long term.

This restructuring follows a previous round of layoffs at Riot nine months ago, when the company cut 530 employees, or roughly 11% of its staff, to manage costs after overextending on several large projects.

The restructuring at Riot is part of a broader trend in the gaming industry.

According to a layoff tracker, over 13,000 game developers have been laid off this year alone, with more than 10,000 impacted in 2023 and over 8,000 in 2022.

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