Until Dawn Developer Supermassive Games Cutting Up to 75 Staff, Following Mixed Response to Directive 8020

Until Dawn developer Supermassive Games has announced layoffs impacting up to 75 staff — the studio's third round of job losses in three years.

This latest round of cuts was confirmed publicly today in a statement posted to social media by Supermassive, which described the "difficult decision to begin a redundancy consultation process" as a "necessary step to help ensure the sustainability of the company."

"We know this will be an incredibly difficult time for everyone, and our priority throughout the process will be to provide support to all those impacted," the studio continued.

Supermassive Games' latest launch was Directive 8020, another title in the studio's signature horror anthology series, The Dark Pictures. The game arrived in May to a positive write-up from IGN which praised its polished visuals and improved gameplay, though the game sits with a mixed user response on Steam, where just 1,400 people have left a review.

The company previously cut staff in February 2024, when around 90 staff were impacted, and again in July 2025 as it shed 35 more employees and delayed the long-in-development Directive 8020 even further. Prior to this, the company reported employing around 350 staff in 2023 — a total that now has been halved.

Based in Guildford, U.K., Supermassive Games was founded in 2008 and has established itself as one of the best-known horror game developers globally. The success of its 2015 classic Until Dawn inspired The Dark Pictures Anthology, a series of standalone narrative horror games where player choice allowed for a wild array of outcomes.

But the studio's recent work has received a lukewarm response, such as its 2025 sequel Little Nightmares 3 and 2024 Dead by Daylight spinoff The Casting of Frank Stone. The company currently does not have a new project announced publicly.

Tom Phillips is IGN's News Editor. You can reach Tom at tom_phillips@ign.com or find him on Bluesky @tomphillipseg.bsky.social