Splitgate 2 by 1047 Games launched on June 6, 2025, with high hopes. Roughly 190 staff, Unreal Engine 5, and $100 million in funding behind it, all aiming to create an even better “Halo with Portals”. Instead, the debut quickly turned rocky.
Reports from Nick Lombardi on LinkedIn, and various other sites, estimate that over $400,000 was spent on influencer marketing during the launch window. But oddly, 83.6% of that went to Twitch despite Twitch representing less than 20% of total viewership. YouTube Shorts got just 3.4% of the marketing budget, even though they reached over 7 million organic views. TikTok got zero. The results suggest the campaign was out of sync with how content was actually being consumed.
Despite surpassing 3 million downloads quickly, the player base did not last long. Current concurrent Steam users tanked, from 25,000 to around 2,000, all in less than six weeks. Console numbers don’t seem to be doing much better.
Much of the backlash came from CEO Ian Proulx’s Summer Game Fest appearance. Wearing a “Make FPS Great Again” hat and criticizing Call of Duty live onstage, Proulx ventured political in a crowded room and then doubled down. Initially he stated he wouldn’t apologize, but a few days later he relented and released a video apology, admitting the stunt was meant to grab attention but he misjudged context. Despite that, many fans felt more alienated than amused.
Almost immediately after launch, 1047 Games began restructuring. Employees were cut, co-founders Ian Proulx and Nicholas Bagamian suspended their salaries, and the focus shifted toward stabilizing core gameplay rather than expanding monetization pipelines.
Adding insult to injury, the in-game store launched with controversial pricing. The infamous “Nano Swarm” bundle started at the $80 mark and had to later be reduced to $40 with the the backlash that was received. Other bundles were met with similar disgust. Proulx later blamed the pricing on a former monetization lead from Call of Duty, claiming, “Things slipped through the cracks”.
What could’ve been a strong release and sequel to the first Splitgate, was instead buried under a wave of negative press. Glitches, empty lobbies, questionable monetization, dubious branding, and a misaligned marketing push all chipped away at goodwill. Even players who stuck around praised the gameplay but pointed to leadership missteps as the real problem. For all the money spent, Splitgate 2 suffered against some self-inflicted wounds.