Splash Damage, the UK studio behind titles like Dirty Bomb and Gears Tactics, has entered a studio-wide consultation process that is expected to result in significant redundancies. This marks one of the most turbulent chapters in the company’s two-decade history.
On November 26, 2025, Splash Damage announced that all roles across the studio are under consultation, a formal process in the UK that precedes layoffs. The company stated this move was necessary to remain “nimble in a challenging and evolving market”.
Staff were informed internally before the news was shared publicly via LinkedIn.
The consultation is expected to conclude with major job losses, though the exact number of redundancies has not yet been disclosed.
🏢 Recent Ownership Changes
- Splash Damage was acquired by unnamed private equity investors in September 2025, just two months before this announcement.
- Prior to that, the studio was owned by Tencent, which purchased it in 2020 for a reported $1.5 billion.
- The new ownership appears to be restructuring aggressively, likely in response to financial pressures and project setbacks.
🎮 Project Setbacks
- Earlier in January 2025, Splash Damage cancelled Transformers: Reactivate, a major online project that had been in development for years.
- The studio was also working on Project Astrid, a AAA survival game in collaboration with streamers shroud and Sacriel. Its future is now uncertain given the scale of the layoffs.
- These cancellations and delays have left the studio without a clear flagship product, intensifying financial strain.
📜 Backstory: From Modders to Industry Players
- Founded in 2001 in Bromley, UK, Splash Damage began as a group of modders working on Quake III Arena.
- Their breakout came with Wolfenstein: Enemy Territory (2003), a free multiplayer shooter that gained cult status.
- Over the years, they became known for their expertise in multiplayer shooters, contributing to Doom 3, Gears of War: Ultimate Edition, and Halo: The Master Chief Collection.
- Their most ambitious original project was Dirty Bomb (2015), a competitive free-to-play shooter that built a loyal but niche community.
⚖️ Industry Context
- The layoffs at Splash Damage reflect a wider trend in the games industry in 2025, where studios across the UK, US, and Europe have faced restructuring due to rising development costs, cancelled projects, and investor-driven consolidation.
- Consultation processes are a legal requirement in the UK, but they often signal large-scale redundancies.
🔮 What’s Next?
- The consultation process will determine how many staff are let go, but the language of the announcement suggests significant cuts are inevitable.
- The fate of Project Astrid and other unannounced titles hangs in the balance.
- For employees, the studio has promised to “minimize the impact” and provide support, though the scale of the layoffs will likely reshape the company’s identity.
Splash Damage’s consultation process is the culmination of a difficult year marked by project cancellations, ownership changes, and market pressures. Once celebrated as pioneers of multiplayer shooters, the studio now faces an uncertain future, with its workforce and creative projects at risk of being drastically reduced.
