Stop me if you’ve heard this one before, almost exactly one month ago: EA, as part of an ongoing transition to focus on “owned IP, sports, and massive online communities” – and, of course, a loving and committed relationship with making the line go up – has canceled a promising in-development project based on a big-name series, laying off numerous talented people in the process. Previously, Titanfall took a tumble. This time, it’s Black Panther that’s met a decidedly un-heroic end.
IGN reports that EA has canceled a little-seen but eagerly anticipated Black Panther open-world action-adventure game and shut down Cliffhanger Games, a studio formed only a couple years ago in 2023. Some members of EA’s mobile and central teams are also on the chopping block. EA has not specified the exact number of people affected, but according to IGN, it’s “less than the roughly 300 roles cut last month across Respawn and EA's Fan Care teams.” In an email to staff, EA Entertainment president Laura Miele said recent shakeups are part of an effort to "sharpen our focus and put our creative energy behind the most significant growth opportunities." She added that EA is attempting to find laid-off developers new roles within the company.
It’s worth noting that as of March 2025, EA employed 800 more people than at the same time last year, meaning that the company is not shrinking – at least in terms of net employee count. Still, this is cold comfort to those impacted by layoffs, whose hard work now lines the wastebasket of history and who – more invisibly but no less crucially – see their teams scattered to the winds. These aren’t just talented individuals; they are rock-solid teams. Game making is a collective effort, honed over the course of multiple projects. It’s a process just as much as it’s an art, a daily trudge toward learning each others’ ins, outs, and idiosyncrasies.
Just to give you an idea of How Things Are Going on that front, Cliffhanger Games was made up of Middle-Earth: Shadow of Mordor vets coming from Monolith Productions. Monolith, you’ll remember, was working on a Wonder Woman game with WB until… that project was also canned, and Monolith, a decades-old studio, was unceremoniously sacrificed at the altar of growth at all costs. In the span of just a few months, we went from multiple Monolith and Monolith-adjacent teams cooking in shared kitchens to zero. I’m sure at least a few folks will find new means of sticking together, but as long as this industry insists on viewing people as numbers – whether on a spreadsheet or as manpower to bolster a random live service game’s ceaseless maintenance machine – this will be the end result.
