Riot Announces Layoffs of League of Legends Devs

Co-founder of Riot Games Marc Merrill took to Twitter to announce that the company is laying off some League of Legends developers while planning to expand the team.

Merrill said that the company had made a "tough decision to eliminate some roles." He explained: "This isn't about reducing headcount to save money – it's about making sure we have the right expertise." Merrill pointed out that the team's effectiveness is more important than its size. However, he shared that they plan to enlarge the League team as the development of the next phase of the game goes on. As shared by GamesIndustry.biz, Riot confirmed the layoff of 27 employees from the League team and five employees from its "publishing side."

The executive also said that laid off employees would be supported with a "severance package that includes a minimum of six months' pay, annual bonus, job placement assistance, health coverage, and more."

In the comments to the post, Merrill explained that it is not the team's size or budget that defines its success: "We've seen small teams at Riot (and elsewhere) build incredible things, while large teams (both at Riot and elsewhere) miss the mark." The executive explained that it is the right priorities and a sustainable approach to delivering what players need that bring success to the team and its projects.

The game industry has seen a large number of layoffs lately, with Microsoft, Take-Two Interactive, Pixar, Respawn Entertainment, and more companies letting go of their workers. In January, Riot laid off 530 employees, which was $11$ of its workforce. The layoffs mostly affected "teams outside of core development."

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