Splash DamageUK game development team Splash Damage is facing studio-wide layoffs. While best known for the FPS Dirty Bomb, they were working on a AAA survival game in partnership with content creators shroud and Sacriel.
Splash Damage announced it would be entering a consultation process on November 26, 2025. This news, shared on LinkedIn, impacts all staff across all disciplines, and it comes following a round of layoffs earlier in the year after the cancellation of an online Transformers game.
Founded in 2001, Splash Damage’s most popular release is Dirty Bomb, a frantic shooter with a high skill ceiling. The UK-based devs also collaborated on Gears 5, Gears Tactics, as well as a number of remasters with Microsoft.
The consultation process will result in significant redundancies, though the exact number of impacted employees remains unclear at this stage. As such, there’s no telling what the future holds for Project Astrid, the AAA game backed by shroud and Sacriel.
Splash Damage facing company-wide layoffs
“This was a difficult step for us to take, but we believe it is necessary so Splash Damage can remain agile and adaptable in what has been a very challenging market,” the company’s statement read.
“We know this kind of change is emotionally tough, and we will do what we can to guide our people through this process with honesty and care.”
In the coming weeks, the team will be looking to “retain talent” while supporting those affected by redundancies. What this means for the future of the studio as a whole is currently unclear.
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Splash DamageSplash Damage last released its own game, Outcasters, in 2020 on Google Stadia. However, the team announced an ambitious undertaking back in 2023, revealing Project Astrid.
Pairing up with influencers shroud and Sacriel, the team was developing a AAA-caliber survival FPS. Shroud described it as his “dream” game.
With a focus on highly polished gunplay, an emphasis on open-world exploration, and plenty of intense encounters, it was something shroud claimed he had “not really seen in the industry before.
“I want to build the best game ever, that’s my goal, and that is Splash Damage’s goal as well,” the former Counter-Strike pro said in the game’s announcement video.
Neither shroud nor Sacriel have publicly commented in light of the studio’s impending layoffs at the time of writing.
For shroud, this news follows close behind another ill-fated gaming project. Spectre Divide, a 3v3 tactical shooter, launched on September 3, 2024. Six months later, the game had been taken offline as the player count continued to dwindle. Subsequently, the dev team, Mountaintop, closed that same week.