In case you weren’t aware, the video game industry has been in a state of flux as layoffs have, unfortunately, continued to impact developers. It hasn’t just been video game creators that have been affected; recently, video game media has also seen the impact of the current state of the industry. GameSpot, Giant Bomb, Rock Paper Shotgun, Eurogamert, GamesIndustry, IGN, and more have been impacted by layoffs in the past few years. Now, IGN has been hit with another round of layoffs, impacting multiple departments and long-time hosts.
Sources tell Kotaku that several staff have been laid off at IGN amid a fresh round of cuts, including long-time video hosts https://t.co/Vr5W3SHNJz
— Kotaku (@Kotaku) September 14, 2026
Kotaku reports that the layoffs have hit multiple departments throughout IGN. How many have been impacted is not clear but some cases have been influenced by employees’ remote status and whether or not they were willing to relocate.
Long-term video hosts Brian Altano and Seth Macy are two of the most notable names that were impacted. Brian Altano has been one of the main hosts of the popular PlayStation podcast Beyond for over a decade. He has also been a host at several live shows including IGN’s coverage at E3, SDCC, Gamescom, IGN Live, and more. Macy was a Senior Commerce Team Editor at the site and was a frequent host on IGN’s Nintendo podcast, Nintendo Voice Chat.
My team had a huge content day today on IGN, covering the launch of Valve’s Steam Frame. So this seems like a good time as any to say that I was affected by today’s layoffs.
— Bo Moore (@usebomswisely.bsky.social) September 14, 2026 at 2:28 PM
My byline is only on one of the 7 stories we posted this morning, but I edited every one, worked late last week and logged on early this morning to make sure everything was on track for one of our biggest coverage days of the year.
— Bo Moore (@usebomswisely.bsky.social) September 14, 2026 at 2:34 PM
Tech writer Bo Moore was also impacted by the layoffs, the same day his coverage of Valve’s Steam Frame launch was on IGN’s front page.
Instead of celebrating that success, I’m mourning the loss of my and many of my talented colleagues’ jobs.
Please hire them. Please hire me. And please still read and watch our work. Our Steam Frame review is sharp and smartly critical of an extremely interesting piece of technology.
— Bo Moore (@usebomswisely.bsky.social) September 14, 2026 at 2:40 PM
Brian Altano released a statement on his Instagram account after a short social media blackout following the report.
“The rumors are true. After seventeen and a half years at IGN, Friday, October 2nd will be my last day working there! It feels surreal even saying that, but getting to work one of the coolest jobs on earth for roughly the same amount of time that I spent in first grade through college is just an insane run that I’ll forever be immensely proud of. I traveled the world for this gig, got to meet so many of my heroes, work alongside some of the most talented writers, hosts, and producers on earth, and meet hundreds of awesome and wonderful fans. There really isn’t any other way I can summarize this. I just feel so lucky I got to do this thing for so long. That wasn’t a chapter. That was several books.
For many of you, I’ve been in your podcast feeds every week talking about video games and more for years and years and my first priority is to figure out how to keep doing that for you, ideally with some familiar voices you’ve heard me collaborate with many times before. I’ve got a few shoots left to do for IGN and then I’m a free agent and I’m honestly more excited than scared about what that’s gonna look like.
Until then, the outpouring of love I’ve received in the past 24 hours has both knocked me on my ass and fired me up like crazy to figure out what’s next. I’m trying my best to get back to everyone. Thank you for being so kind. I’ve got nothing but love for the folks still working to make cool stuff at IGN and I wish them all the success in the world.
Thank you ALL for letting me be a part of your life and I hope you’ll join me for what’s next. We’re gonna have fun. That’s always what this was all about.
Love Brian”
The IGN Creators Guild also released a statement:
“Today was an awful day at IGN. We were blindsided by the layoff of four union members and many more people across the organization who contributed years of their careers to making IGN an unparalleled voice in games and entertainment.
With each successive layoff, core parts of IGN’s operation continue to be stripped away. Today, IGN has decided to do away with many of our talented producers, editors, hosts, and other crucial roles, both within and out of the union. How many layoffs will occur before we no longer recognize the company we work for and the content that we make?
While we recognize the challenges the media industry is facing as a whole, it is difficult to understand how laying off valuable employees better positions us to meet those challenges. In turn, remaining employees bear additional workloads worsened by anxiety over the ever-looming threat of another layoff.
We are devastated, angry, and heartbroken for our colleagues.”
IGN Creators Guild leadsership told Aftermath that the union were not told about the layoffs in advance, despite getting a heads up in previous rounds. It took the Guild the majority of the day to find out who had been impacted, both inside and outside of the union. So far, there are approximately four union employees affected. There is another pending a decision in November. It’s pending because the union say the employee was given an ultimatum to either move to Los Angeles– despite owning a home and having kids in school in their home city–or be laid off.
Welp. Starting in November, I will no longer be employed by IGN. It’s been a hell of a ride and I cannot understate how much of an honor and a privilege the last 11+ years have been. This was a dream job, but the best part of IGN is, was, and always will be the people.
— Max Scoville (@maxscoville.bsky.social) September 15, 2026 at 2:50 PM
That employee may be revealed to be Max Scoville, another long-time host. He has released a statement announcing his depature from IGN in November.
I never took this role for granted, and I’m extremely grateful to everyone who took the time to watch, listen, read or otherwise pay attention to what I was up to. I hope you liked it!
I’m still very much wrapping my head around what’s next, so please reach out if you know of any opportunities!
— Max Scoville (@maxscoville.bsky.social) September 15, 2026 at 2:58 PM
