Epic Games, the company behind the massively successful video game Fortnite, has announced layoffs impacting hundreds of employees, including some Canadians.
Tim Sweeney, the founder and CEO of Epic Games, sent an email to employees detailing the layoffs.
In the email, Sweeney said that around 16% of Epic employees were being laid off. Forbes has reported that 16% amounts to about 900 employees in total.
“For a while now, we’ve been spending way more money than we earn, investing in the next evolution of Epic and growing Fortnite as a metaverse-inspired ecosystem for creators,” Sweeney wrote.
“Saying goodbye to people who have helped build Epic is a terrible experience for all.”
The one silver lining for employees, including those based in Canada, is that Epic is offering a severance package for impacted positions, which includes six months of base pay and six months of Epic-paid healthcare.
“We’re offering to accelerate people’s stock option vesting schedule through the end of 2024 and are giving two additional years from today to exercise the options. In the US, we’re also offering to vest any unearned profit sharing from their 401K. And we’ll provide benefits, including career transition services and visa support where we can.”
Bandcamp, a popular music platform, was acquired by Epic Games in 2002. In the email from Sweeney, he announced that Epic Games was also going to be divesting from Bandcamp.
We’ve contacted Epic Games for more specific numbers of Canadians impacted by the layoffs.
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