At the beginning of the year, Riot Games became part of the long list of developers who laid off large number of developers. Now, Riot Games has announced another update regarding its employees, this time focused on the League of Legends PC development team. Riot Games Co-Founder Marc Merrill released a message on X/Twitter saying they have “made the decision to eliminate some roles” with a second round of layoffs.
“Hey all,
I want to share some important updates about @leagueoflegends PC. We’ve made changes to our teams and how we work to make sure we can keep improving the League experience now and for the long-term. But I want to be clear: we’re not slowing down work on the game you love. We’re investing heavily in solving today’s challenges faster while also building for the future.
As part of these changes, we’ve made the tough decision to eliminate some roles. This isn’t about reducing headcount to save money – it’s about making sure we have the right expertise so that League continues to be great for another 15 years and beyond. 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. 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.
We have full confidence in @RiotMeddler, @RiotPabro, and the League leadership team, who are leading the charge in this next phase of League’s journey, and we look forward to sharing more about our ambitious plans in the future.
Thank you all for playing and for being part of the League community.”
Marc
Riot Ganes confirmed to Eurogamer that a total of 32 employees are impacted by these second round of layoffs. 27 are from the League of Legends team and the final 5 are from publishing.
Merrill also talked about team size and their approach on both size and budget and how they aren’t the best way to measure success.
“Success isn’t about throwing more people or money at a challenge. We’ve seen small teams at Riot (and elsewhere) build incredible things, while large teams (both at Riot and elsewhere) miss the mark. While the League team will ultimately be larger after these changes, what matters more than size is having the right team, right priorities, and a sustainable approach to delivering what players need. If we’re solving the wrong problems, more resources won’t fix it. It’s about building smarter and healthier, not just bigger.”