UK-based game developer Splash Damage announced Friday that it has laid off an unknown number of staff in what it described as a “studio-wide consultation process.”
“This was a difficult step for us to take, but we believe is necessary so Splash Damage can remain agile and adaptable in what has been a very challenging market,” the company wrote in a post on LinkedIn Friday. “We know this kind of change is emotionally tough, and we will do what we can to guide our people through the process with honesty and care. We’re committed to exploring every option to retain talent and making sure those affected have meaningful support throughout.”
It is unclear just how many employees have been affected by these layoffs, but LinkedIn puts the company’s headcount at somewhere between 51 and 200 employees (it should be noted that these numbers are often inaccurate as employees on the platform are not always diligent in updating their work histories in their profiles).
UK-based Splash Damage was founded in 2001 by Paul Wedgwood, Richard Jolly, and Arnout van Meer who began their career in game development as part of the early Quake 3 modding scene, creating such memorable mods as Quake 3 Fortress. In its early days the company worked under the names Now TV and Gamer.tv, where it provided a repository of fan-made Quake 3 maps and an in-game television production product.
The company has a number of notable games under its belt including Wolfenstein: Enemy Territory, Enemy Territory: Quake Wars, Brink, Dirty Bomb, the multiplayer mode for Batman Arkham Origins, RAD Soldiers, multiplayer support on Gears of War 4, development support on Gears Of War Ultimate Edition, multiplayer support on Gears of War 4, development support on Gears 5, the PC port of Halo: The Master Chief Collection, and Gears Tactics. The company also operated a publishing division called Warchest and a back-end technology business called Fireteam.
In July 2016, Splash Damage was acquired by Chinese company Leyou, and at the end of 2020, it was sold off to another Chinese company—Tencent. Splash Damage remained a subsidiary of Tencent until 2025, when it was sold to a private group of equity investors.