The Video Game Layoffs Continue, This Time at F1 Manager Developer Frontier

2023 continues to be an extremely difficult year for the video game development industry, with yet another wave of layoffs announced.

This time, UK studio Frontier Developments has announced an organisational review of the business that includes a wave of redundancies, subject to consultation. A spokesperson for Frontier told IGN this morning that it was unable to share how many people will be affected as the review is not yet concluded.

Frontier Developments is the veteran Cambridge-based studio behind 2014’s space sim Elite: Dangerous, Microsoft’s Zoo Tycoon, Planet Coaster, and the Jurassic World Evolution games. In recent years, it’s released two F1 Manager games, with real-time strategy game Warhammer Age of Sigmar: Realms of Ruin due out in November. Frontier also published games from external developers under its Frontier Foundry label, including Warhammer 40,000: Chaos Gate – Daemonhunters, Deliver Us Mars, and FAR: Changing Tides.

In January, Frontier said it planned to lower its original sales expectations for the fiscal years of 2023 and 2024 after its games underperformed during the 2022 holiday season. F1 Manager 2022, which launched in August 2022, was singled out, with “lower than expected” sales of 600,000 across console and PC. At the time, Frontier said there was “increased player price sensitivity” amid larger concerns of a global economic recession.

Then, in June, Frontier announced the closure of its Frontier Foundry subsidiary and a plan to concentrate on its own universe of curated games, admitting to “disappointing” financial performance across its third-party portfolio.

F1 Manager 2023 launched in July but is thought to have similarly underperformed. Now, in a new trading update, Frontier said it had “refined” its strategy to focus on its core strengths following “a period of disappointing financial performance and more challenging industry conditions” This organisational review will “reshape” the business to help return Frontier to profit, it said.

A reduction in annual operating costs of up to 20% is planned, and this will be achieved through a recruitment freeze, spending cuts and redundancies. The actions are expected to end early 2024, “placing Frontier in a strong position to deliver efficiently on its strategic plan over the medium term, and capitalise on future opportunities.”

Frontier’s existing game portfolio “continues to perform in-line with expectations” the company said. It’s looking to Warhammer Age of Sigmar: Realms of Ruin’s release date and the shopping-heavy Black Friday and Christmas period for revenue. Frontier said it expects £108 million in revenue for the 2024 financial year, with a loss of £9 million.

The Frontier news is the latest in an increasingly long list of video game layoffs during 2023. Technical artist Farhan Noor has been tracking layoff numbers since the beginning of 2023, and estimates 112 rounds of layoffs so far this year, with an eye-watering 6383 people losing their jobs.

Embracer Group is currently embroiled in a restructure that’s seen layoffs and even studio closures, with Saints Row developer Volition shut down in the summer. Cyberpunk 2077 developer CD Projekt has also seen a significant round of layoffs that have prompted the formation of a Polish union. Fortnite maker Epic Games recently laid off 830 employees, a move that seriously affected Mediatonic, the UK developer behind Fall Guys. More recently, Telltale Games reportedly laid off most of its workers, and Worms maker Team17 saw deep cuts.

Wesley is the UK News Editor for IGN. Find him on Twitter at @wyp100. You can reach Wesley at wesley_yinpoole@ign.com or confidentially at wyp100@proton.me.