A recent report from the ASGC Games Industry Layoffs Tracker indicates that job losses in the gaming industry are expected to reach 14,259 by the end of 2026, a significant 78% increase from the initial forecast.
Initially projected at 8,025 for the year, the number of layoffs has already risen to 9,781 as of the latest update on July 26.
Amir Satvat, the business development director at Tencent Games and the tracker’s maintainer, noted that the rate of layoffs is outpacing their initial predictions.
On July 10, a previous forecast estimated 13,878 layoffs, with an increase of 381 redundancies in just over two weeks. This includes layoffs at various companies such as ZA/UM, 11 Bit Studios, Ubisoft Barcelona, and Red Rover Interactive.
The update on July 10 came after a significant round of layoffs in the Xbox division, affecting 1,600 employees across Obsidian, Bethesda, Id Software, and Zenimax Online Studios.
North America has seen 66% of the layoffs, with the United States accounting for 48% and Canada for 17%. Meanwhile, Europe makes up 30% of the total layoffs.
When combining North America and Europe, they represent 95% of all layoffs in the industry.
This year is expected to surpass the estimated total of 15,631 layoffs in 2024, following a decrease to 9,197 last year. Over the span of five years, the total projected layoffs are anticipated to approach 60,000.
Satvat mentioned that the timing of Microsoft’s remaining 1,600 cuts is uncertain, with the possibility that some may occur in the latter half of FY27, during calendar 2027.
He further stated, “I currently assume all will occur in 2026 and will revise the estimate as better information becomes available.”