In the world of strategy games, Firaxis is something of a household name as the developers of Sid Meir’s renowned Civilization series.
However, recently, following the release of the seventh installment in February to mixed reviews, parent company 2K has confirmed that Firaxis has laid off an unspecified number of employees.
This comes at a time when wide-spread layoffs are sweeping through development studios, with the squeeze of economic pressures and the rising cost of video games being felt. It, again begs a return to the question of whether or not AAA game development is sustainable in its current form.
Faraxis Layoffs
Speaking to Game Developer, 2K stated that there was a “staff reduction today at Firaxis Games,” as the studio “restructures and optimizes” for “adaptability, collaboration, and creativity.”
This is despite Take-Two Interactive (parent company of 2K and therefore of Firaxis) seeing a 16% boost to sold products in Q1 2025, totalling $1.42 billion. This was hailed as significantly above their forecasts, which does throw the decision to cut developmental teams of the games comprising those profits into greater question.
How Will This Impact Upcoming Faraxis Games?
With Civ 7 having been released only recently, much of the work at Firaxis is likely focusing on updates and DLC packages for this game.
Before Civ 7, Firaxis’ last project was Marvel’s Midnight Suns, a game that saw a great deal of critical praise but struggled financially.
Difficulties were also likely exacerbated by Civilization 7’s slow sales.
The studio has been quiet on the future of XCOM, and while the series has fans, there are also a lot of doubts about how likely another entry in the series is.
Industry Wide Gaming Layoffs
As mentioned previously, this is part of a wide-ranging problem in the games industry.
Over four-thousand developers have lost their jobs so far in 2025, which speaks to the kind of economic conditions that a lot of these studios are finding themselves in, at the same time as the use of AI tools is becoming more prevalent in development.
In addition to this, there has been a surge in the formation of video game unions due to the historical precariousness of having a job in this line of work. These groups are hoping to secure better protection for these employees, such as firm notice periods and more concrete severance packages.
