Report: Fall Guys developer Mediatonic "decimated" by Epic layoffs

The mass layoffs conducted by Epic Games earlier today may have resulted in the full closure of Fall Guys creator Mediatonic. 

On LinkedIn, a number of employees at the studio have revealed they were let go as part of the job cuts. On X (formerly known as Twitter), some have described the developer's fate as a "decimation."

"Sad to say that I am one of the many people affected by the layoffs at Mediatonic / Epic today," wrote writer Ed Fear. "It's been an amazing 11 years at MT and I've loved working with these people so, so much."

Epic acquired Mediatonic (via then-parent group Tonic Games) in 2021. The following year, Fall Guys switched to a free-to-play model and left Steam to become an Epic Games Store exclusive on PC. Shifting models proved to be successful for the platform battle royale game, which hit 50 million players weeks after the free-to-play switch.

Founded in 2005 by Dave Bailey and Paul Croft, the studio's pre-Fall Guys work include the remake of Hatoful Boyfriend, Gears Pop!, and Murder by Numbers.

Mediatonic has supported Fall Guys with consistent updates since its initial 2020 launch. At time of writing, neither it or the developer have confirmed how hard the layoffs hit or the future of Fall Guys in general. On X, the game's most recent post was hours before Epic's layoffs were revealed to the public. 

Game Developer has reached out to both Epic Games and Mediatonic, and will update this story when a response is given.

Update: A spokesperson for Epic Games called the claims of Mediatonic's closure "false," pointing to Epic CEO Tim Sweeney's missive where he confirmed the company would continue to invest in games, including Fall Guys.

However, it remains unclear how much staff presently remain at Mediatonic following the layoffs.