About 16% of Epic Games’ workforce is set to lose their jobs, amid concerns that Fortnite isn’t bringing in the money it used to.
The developer and publisher of Fortnite and Unreal Engine is about to terminate a significant amount of jobs, according to Bloomberg.
The concerning news comes despite Epic Games’ flagship game, Fortnite, being one of the most played games in the world. The video game company has also announced it will make it more expensive to buy items in Fortnite.
Founder and CEO of Epic Games, Tim Sweeney, told employees in an email that this is partly because, ‘For a while now, we’ve been spending way more money than we earn.’
Sweeney also said that Fortnite Creator profit margins are not as high as they used to be, but that the company is not planning on additional layoffs after this and is still hiring.
This is all very surprising, since Unreal Engine seems more ubiquitous than ever and while it’s no longer at its peak Fortnite is still clearly very popular. Although only Epic knows how much it’s costing to keep it that way.
According to Bloomberg, Epic Games is also divesting two of their previous acquisitions, Bandcamp and SuperAwesome.
Employees who lose their job will receive a six month severance payment and health benefits.
To add more weight to company funds, starting from October 27, the price of V-Bucks – the in-game currency used to buy items like skins in Fortnite – will see a major increase.
Here are the V-Bucks increases:
- 1000 V-Bucks will increase from $7.99 to $8.99.
- 2,800 V-Bucks for $22.99 (currently $19.99)
- 5,000 V-bucks for $36.99 (currently $31.99)
- 13,500 V-bucks for $89.99 (currently $79.99)
The price changes will affect players in Czech Republic, Denmark, Eurozone countries, Hungary, Japan, Norway, Poland, Romania, Sweden, Turkey, and the United States.
Similar prices rises were already applied to the UK, Canada, and Mexico earlier in the year.
NEWS: Epic Games, the maker of Fortnite and Unreal Engine, is laying off a whopping 16% of employees (or around 900 people), sources tell Bloomberg News. More to come
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