Refractor Games cuts most of staff after Fifa World Cup launch
Developed over time first seen 3 months ago
Refractor Games, the studio behind Fifa World Cup: Launch Edition, laid off around 85% of its staff less than two months after the game's release, marking a swift and drastic downturn for a team that had just shipped a major title. The game launched exclusively on Netflix on 11th June and was published by Delphi Interactive, which also worked on 007: First Light. Studio head Nathan Burba confirmed the cuts to Gamesbeat, tying them to the cancellation of funding for the studio's next project, and the news first emerged after affected employees posted about their departures on LinkedIn.
Reports put the total number of staff let go at roughly 80, though the studio has not been shut down entirely despite some social media posts implying otherwise. Burba did not elaborate further when contacted by Gamesbeat, and Eurogamer's approaches to both Fifa and Delphi for comment went unanswered.
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In short
- Refractor Games laid off ~85% of staff after shipping Fifa World Cup
- Cuts followed cancelled funding for the studio's next project
- Around 80 staff affected; studio remains open, not fully closed
How this story developed
- 3 months ago Eurogamer's outreach to Fifa and Delphi Interactive for comment was confirmed as still outstanding, with the outlet noting it had formally sought responses from both parties even as Burba continued to withhold further explanation and the studio maintained it had not been fully shut down.
- 3 months ago Refractor Games, developer of Fifa World Cup: Launch Edition, cut around 85% of its workforce, roughly 80 people, just weeks after the Netflix-exclusive title launched on 11th June, with studio head Nathan Burba confirming to Gamesbeat that the axing of funding for the studio's next project was to blame, while Delphi Interactive and Eurogamer's requests for further comment went unanswered.
Explained simply
Refractor Games is a UK video game studio that developed Fifa World Cup: Launch Edition, a football game released exclusively on Netflix on 11th June. The game was published by Delphi Interactive, a company also involved in the recent James Bond game 007: First Light. Studio head Nathan Burba has confirmed that most of the workforce has now been let go, following the loss of funding for the studio's next project.
The wider context here is the games industry's ongoing wave of layoffs, where studios often depend on securing backing for their next title to keep staff employed once a current project ships. Netflix has been expanding into gaming as part of its broader entertainment offering, making this launch part of that push, though the streaming giant is not reported to be directly responsible for the cuts.
The scale of the layoffs, roughly 80 people, matters because it shows how quickly a studio's fortunes can change even after a game reaches release, and it raises questions about the studio's future and the wider stability of jobs in game development.
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Originally published by Eurogamer as “The developer behind Fifa World Cup – which launched less than two months ago – has laid off 85% of its staff”.