In the latest round of layoffs for the video game industry in 2024, Electronic Arts has announced that it will be cutting around 5% of its workforce (around 670 employees) as the company pivots to a new development model that it feels will be the most successful in the coming years. In a letter from EA CEO Andrew Wilson, he states, “This greater focus allows us to drive creativity, accelerate innovation, and double down on our biggest opportunities — including our owned IP, sports, and massive online communities — to deliver the entertainment players want today and tomorrow.”
This news follows the closure of some of EA’s mobile studios last week, including the ones that worked on MLB Tap Sports and F1 Mobile Racing. While this statement didn’t touch on two of EA’s biggest upcoming licensed games, Black Panther and Iron Man, a representative told GamesIndustry.biz that both titles remain in development. These will likely be some of the final licensed games to come from the publisher, however.
EA’s latest restructuring follows on from last year’s similar announcement. In March of 2023, EA laid off around 6% of its then-current staff (roughly 775 employees) with Wilson stating the company was “operating from a position of strength.” What that statement even means is beyond me, but Wilson said of this latest round that the company “deeply considered every option to try and limit impacts to our teams.”
Sure.
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Written by Peter Glagowski
Peter has been a freelance gaming and film critic for over seven years. His passion for Nintendo is only matched by the size of his collection.
