Riot Games is the latest games industry megacorp to issue layoffs this week, though they’re smaller in number than the thousands of workers shed by the likes of Microsoft and Amazon. Esports journalist Jacob Wolf first reported the layoffs on Wednesday, pinpointing the focus on reducing human resources, support, and esports staff, but Riot has since confirmed them, admitting to laying off 46 people – around one percent of its global workforce.
“Riot Games implemented strategic shifts within a few teams to sharpen our focus in a number of areas,” Riot’s statement reads. “With these shifts, certain roles were eliminated, impacting a total of 46 Rioters. This is part of our normal course of our business: We periodically make changes to our structure and our teams based on what we believe will allow us to deliver the best content and experiences for players. We never make these decisions lightly and will always start from a place of wanting to retain Rioters and have them focus on our highest priorities. While that’s not always possible, it’s our primary goal.”
