Supermassive Games layoffs: over 70 staff reportedly out
Supermassive Games layoffs are underway, reports say, with more than 70 staff leaving. What the studio confirmed in August and what is still unconfirmed.
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Supermassive Games layoffs are now underway, with more than 70 people leaving the studio behind Until Dawn and The Dark Pictures Anthology, according to reports from Push Square and Insider Gaming on October 5, 2026. Both rest on a LinkedIn post by the studio's departing IT and facilities director, not on a new company statement. What Supermassive did confirm, on August 11, is a consultation it expected to cost up to 75 jobs.
Key takeaways
- The plan is confirmed. Supermassive said on August 11 that it had started a redundancy consultation it expected to end with the loss of "up to 75" colleagues.
- The final number is reported, not announced. A departing director wrote that more than 70 people are leaving. That figure is not confirmed by Supermassive Games as of Oct. 6, 2026.
- It's the third round in three years. About 90 roles went in February 2024 and up to 36 in July 2025, by earlier reports.
- No game has been named. Supermassive hasn't said what the cuts mean for any project.
What changed: Supermassive Games layoffs are happening
The new detail comes from Frank Tindle, who spent 16 years at the studio. In a LinkedIn post on October 5, he wrote that his role had been at risk for a few weeks and that it was now his last day. He joined in 2010 as the whole IT department and leaves as IT and facilities director and a member of the senior leadership team.
He also said he isn't the only one going: "More than 70 brilliant people are leaving Supermassive: developers, artists, producers, QA, operations and more." Insider Gaming adds that several other former employees posted that they had been let go, and that the studio had not commented on the completed cuts.
So the post confirms that people across most of the studio's disciplines are leaving. It doesn't give a breakdown by team, and "more than 70" is one departing manager's count. It does sit just under the ceiling the studio set in August.
What the studio confirmed, and what it hasn't
The consultation itself is not a rumor. In a statement on X on August 11, Supermassive wrote: "We have made the difficult decision to begin a redundancy consultation process, which we anticipate will result in the loss of up to 75 of our colleagues." It called the step necessary "to help ensure the sustainability of the company," as Game Developer reported the same day.
Since then, we found no new statement from the studio about the Supermassive Games layoffs. It hasn't confirmed how many roles were cut, which teams lost people, or whether the consultation has formally closed. Until it does, the "more than 70" figure stays a report.
How these Supermassive layoffs compare with earlier rounds
This is the studio's third round of job cuts since early 2024.
| When | Roles | Context |
|---|---|---|
| February 2024 | About 90 | Reported by Bloomberg, per Game Developer; the studio then had more than 300 staff |
| July 2025 | Up to 36 | Announced with Directive 8020's delay to the first half of 2026 |
| August to October 2026 | Up to 75 announced, more than 70 reported leaving | Came months after Directive 8020's May 2026 launch |
The February 2024 headcount and the July 2025 figures come from Engadget's coverage of that second round. Added together, the reported figures come to roughly 200 roles in under three years; that's our arithmetic, not a company total. Tindle wrote that the studio grew to more than 400 people during his time there, but Supermassive hasn't published a current headcount, so we can't say what share of the team is leaving.
There's been change at the top, too. Supermassive is wholly owned by Nordisk Games, which bought the rest of the studio in July 2022. Its CEO, Robert Henrysson, stepped down in June 2026, about six weeks after Directive 8020 launched.
What it means for the studio's games
The Until Dawn studio's most recent releases are already out. Directive 8020, the latest Dark Pictures game, launched in May 2026, and Little Nightmares III, which Supermassive developed, came out in October 2025. Until Dawn 2 is being made by Sony's Firesprite, not Supermassive, Engadget notes, so it isn't directly part of this story.
What's unclear is the next game. The August statement named no project, and the studio hasn't said what it's working on now. Losing developers, artists, producers and QA at once points, in our reading, to a smaller team going forward, but how that changes any upcoming release is something only Supermassive or Nordisk can answer.
It's the second studio in a week where staff posts, not a company announcement, showed that cuts had landed. We covered the same pattern in our report on the Ninja Theory layoffs. For more, see our video games coverage and the layoffs tag.
What happens next
Three things to watch:
- A statement from Supermassive or Nordisk Games with the final number and the teams affected.
- Any word on the studio's next project, or on whether Directive 8020 gets more support.
- Where the people leaving land. Tindle offered in his post to introduce former colleagues to studios that are hiring.
Bottom line
The Supermassive Games layoffs were planned in a consultation the studio confirmed in August; the outcome is reported. More than 70 staff are leaving, according to a departing director's post, a number not confirmed by Supermassive Games as of Oct. 6, 2026. If you play the studio's games, nothing already released changes, but the team behind its next one will be smaller. We'll update this if the studio speaks.
FAQ
How many people did Supermassive Games lay off?
Supermassive said in August that it expected to lose up to 75 roles. On October 5, its departing IT and facilities director wrote that more than 70 people were leaving. The studio hasn't confirmed a final number as of October 6, 2026.
Why is Supermassive Games laying off staff?
The studio's only stated reason is "the sustainability of the company." It hasn't given more detail. The cuts came a few months after Directive 8020 launched and after its CEO stepped down.
Who owns Supermassive Games?
Nordisk Games owns 100% of the studio. It took a 30.7% stake in March 2021 and bought the rest in July 2022, according to Supermassive's announcement.
Is Supermassive making Until Dawn 2?
No. Until Dawn 2 is in development at Sony's Firesprite studio, so these layoffs don't directly involve it.