Hi-Rez Ends Development on Smite 1 and Paladins, Lays Off Up to Half of Employees as Smite 2 Becomes Their Focus

Looks like Hi-Rez Studios is putting everything into Smite 2, as the team has confirmed that Smite 1 and Paladins have ended development. This comes at a cost, as former employees are reporting another round of layoffs.

This week, Hi-Rez announced the Nintendo Switch version of Smite 1 would shut down in May. The new layoffs affect teams that ended development, but they are also affecting the Smite 2 team, which really shows how deep these cuts go. However they are pushing ahead with the game, working to improve it and to take it to its eventual final launch. Ryan “Aggro” Bailey, a former Smite 2 dev, shared that he was one of those laid off in this latest round, and that he had worked on the Smite games for more than 8 years. 

A growing Reddit megathread over on the Smite subreddit is tracking the affected employees. Community streamer Hayzer (who posted that megathread) also speculates about the layoffs, saying that it could be 50 to 60 people involved this time, or about 50% of the company being let go this time after a couple of rounds of layoffs in the past year or two.

While we all want there to be some signs of recovery, it doesn't seem like we're going to get that level of optimism just yet in the overall industry. The layoffs are still happening, and they are still happening frequently. 

If half the company is gone though, it makes sense that they are shutting down development on their other games. They are putting them into maintenance mode, so you can still play, but “Smite 2 will continue to be the focus of the newly streamlined operations. These reductions should enable a steady flow of new content and the continued development of Smite 2, while aligning team costs with revenues,” a Hi-Rez representative said. Smite 2 recently extended its beta to all.

These measures are seemingly what it looks like to try and avoid a shutdown and get the Smite 2 team over the finish line.