AAA Studio Layoff Data — Q1 2026 Was the Biggest Yet

The first quarter of 2026 saw more public AAA studio layoffs than any quarter on record — including the brutal 2024 stretch. The aggregate is unflattering.

By our count, 14 publicly announced AAA layoff rounds touched roughly 8,400 staff across Q1, with the largest cuts at Embracer subsidiaries, EA, Take-Two and three first-party Microsoft studios. Indie and mid-tier cuts add another estimated 3,200 — though disclosure is patchier outside the public-co tier.

The structural driver is unchanged from 2024: AAA budgets ran ahead of demand, and publishers are correcting on cost rather than revenue. Where this cycle is different is the geographic mix — Eastern European studios were over-represented for the first time, and Japanese-owned mid-tier studios were largely insulated.