For the third time in 2025, Crystal Dynamics has laid off more of its staff. As for why, it states that it’s due to reorganizing that is ‘necessary’.
Since 1992, Crystal Dynamics has delivered a solid lineup of games that many hold dear. From the epic Legacy of Kain series to the iconic Tomb Raider franchise, the company has a great legacy behind it. In recent years, however, it hasn’t lived up to that degree. Its last big release, 2020’s Marvel’s Avengers, was a commercial and critical flop. Unfortunately, the one project hoping to change that, Xbox’s reboot of Perfect Dark, was cancelled earlier this year. Now, after two already devastating layoffs, another one has come, this time firing 30 workers.
Crystal Dynamics Lays Off Staff for a Third Time This Year
In a LinkedIn post by the company, Crystal Dynamics released a statement regarding new layoffs. This time, it is letting go of around 30 staff members, though from which departments is unknown. As mentioned before, this is the third round of layoffs the company has had. The first happened in March with 17 employees, then the second in August after Perfect Dark’s cancellation with an undisclosed amount.
“Today we’ve made the difficult but necessary decision to reorganize Crystal Dynamics’ studios and teams,” the team stated on LinkedIn. “As a result, we’ve parted ways with just under 30 team members across various departments and projects as we restructure the company and business for our next generation. Crystal deeply thanks all of those impacted for their incredible talent, hard work, and dedication, which helped shape the studio in so many ways. We are committed to offering our fullest resources and support to you during this transition.”
As with last time, Crystal Dynamics assures fans that Tomb Raider is still in development. In fact, it stated that “…as the realities of the industry continue to evolve, we’ve made these painful choices as a way to optimize the continued development of our flagship Tomb Raider game, as well as shaping the rest of the studio to make new games for the future.“
Layoffs are sadly not uncommon in the gaming industry, but the past few years have been terrible. Whole studios like Monolith Productions and games like Wonder Woman and Everwild shuttered instantly. Hopefully, the people affected will land on their feet and wish the best to them on their journey.
What do you think of the Crystal Dynamics layoffs? Is it disappointing to see? Still excited for the next Tomb Raider? Let us know in the comments and on the official Insider Gaming Discord!
For more Tomb Raider, check out our articles on The Legend of Lara Croft and Amazon’s live-action series. Make sure to subscribe to our weekly newsletter! Also, we just launched a new app for Insider Gaming on Android (and soon iOS)! Check it out if you get a chance!
