Update 29/02/2025: A report from Bloomberg clarifies that somewhere between 300-400 developers have been laid off at EA, with approximately 100 of those cuts coming from Respawn.
According to Bloomberg, the incubation project EA canceled was under the codename R7, and was an extraction shooter set within the world of Titanfall.
In a statement on the cuts, EA spokesperson Justin Higgs said, "As part of our continued focus for our long-term strategic priorities, we've made select changes within our organization that more effectively aligns teams and allocates resources in service of driving future growth."
Original Story:
EA has canceled yet another project that was in an early incubation stage at Respawn, one month after it canceled a multiplayer project at the same stage, and according to a report from IGN, EA will also be laying off an unknown number of employees at Respawn across the Apex Legends, Star Wars Jedi, and incubation teams.
In a statement published to X, Respawn announces that it has "made the decision to step away from two early-stage incubation projects," which refers to the project canceled last month, and another cancellation we're hearing about today for the first time. Respawn continues to add that there will be layoffs across the Apex Legends and Star Wars teams, though it doesn't mention the cuts to the incubation team, which come from IGN's sources.
It's unclear how many people have been cut from Respawn, though the cuts are reportedly being made across departments and aren't focused on one part of the studio.
"As we sharpen our focus for the future, we've made the decision to step away from two early-stage incubation projects and make some targeted team adjustments across Apex Legends and Star Wars Jedi. These decisions aren't easy, and we are deeply grateful to every teammate affected - their creativity and contributions have helped build Respawn into what it is today. We're offering meaningful support to those impacts, including exploring new opportunities within EA," the studio's statement reads.
The statement also addressed what these cuts mean for Apex Legends and Star Wars Jedi, saying of the former that "while the team will continue to refine gameplay and bring new ideas to upcoming seasons, we're also investing in what's next for the franchise - exploring bold experiences that push the boundaries of competitive play while staying true to the spirit of competition."
Regarding the latter, Respawn simply added, "We're excited to keep building new stories—with the next chapter of the Star Wars Jedi series aiming to raise the bar again for storytelling and gameplay."
The booming success of Apex Legends and the Star Wars Jedi series in 2019 has, in many ways, made Respawn the crown jewel studio for EA's entertainment side of the business. But it's worth asking how long it could keep that status if EA consistently shuts down the new ideas the developers at Respawn come up with.
About the author: David has been writing about videogames, technology, and culture since 2020, with a focus on reporting daily news across multiple publications, including GameDaily.Biz, GameSkinny, and PlayStation Universe before joining Wccftech in 2025. David started contributing as Canada/US reporter for Wccftech's gaming section in 2025. Besides being up-to-date on the industry's movements, he loves interviewing developers, reviewing games, and writing intricate essays about the symbolism and layered meanings to be found in rich narratives as he's done for publications like GamesIndustry.Biz, LostInCult, and others. Outside of games he loves movies, music, theatre, his hometown, and his family, though not necessarily in that order.
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