Dark Pictures and Until Dawn developer Supermassive Games to undergo a huge layoff following mixed reception to its latest game
Supermassive Games, the studio behind Until Dawn and The Dark Pictures Anthology, has announced it will cut up to 75 jobs after its latest release, Directive 8020, failed to win over critics or players. The company confirmed the news in a statement posted to X, describing the move as a "redundancy consultation" necessary to ensure its long-term sustainability, adding to a wave of ongoing layoffs across the games industry.
Directive 8020 launched three months ago and departed from Supermassive's usual formula, though it retained many of the narrative-driven elements the studio is known for. It has received only a "Mixed" rating on Steam, and its weak reception appears to have directly prompted the cuts. Supermassive said it would try to support affected staff, though it did not give specifics, while the studio's back catalogue, including the influential Until Dawn, remains a distinct example of choice-driven interactive horror.
In short
- Supermassive Games to cut up to 75 jobs
- Layoffs follow poor reception to Directive 8020
- Studio cites need to ensure long-term sustainability
Steelman: both sides, in good faith
The strongest fair case each way — we don't pick a winner.
The case for
The company faces genuine financial pressures when a significant release underperforms, and maintaining workforce levels during revenue decline threatens the studio's viability and independence. Difficult cost-cutting decisions are sometimes necessary for long-term survival, allowing the company to preserve remaining jobs and continue development. Management has a responsibility to shareholders and remaining staff to ensure the studio can weather market setbacks without jeopardising its future.
The case against
Mass layoffs following a single game's mixed reception reflect an unsustainable industry pattern prioritising shareholder returns over worker stability and welfare. The studio had other options including restructuring, smaller targeted cuts, or reallocating resources, yet chose the most severe approach whilst workers—not executives—bear the consequences. This repeated pattern exploits workers for market conditions largely beyond their control, perpetuating a damaging cycle the industry must address.
Explained simply
Supermassive Games is a British video game studio best known for horror stories in which players make choices that affect what happens to the characters. Until Dawn helped establish this approach, and The Dark Pictures Anthology continued it through a series of separate stories.
Directive 8020 is part of Supermassive’s newer work and keeps some of its focus on story and player decisions while changing the studio’s usual formula. The company says the proposed job cuts are intended to support its long-term future; the case also sits within wider job losses across the games industry.