Refactor Games, the studio behind the much‑anticipated FIFA World Cup: Launch Edition, announced that it has laid off 85 percent of its staff just weeks after the title’s debut.
The cuts came after its publisher, Delphi Interactive, withdrew financial backing, a move confirmed by former art director Barclay Chantel on LinkedIn, who said the company pulled support once the game shipped.
The Rise and Fall of a FIFA Experiment
Despite the grim employment picture, the game had drawn 1.5 million players in its first week, marking Netflix’s biggest cloud‑gaming launch to date, a figure that initially sparked optimism about the platform’s gaming ambitions.
Critics, however, were unforgiving, describing the title as a “modern hellscape and an embarrassment to everyone involved,” a sentiment that underscored the gap between commercial metrics and critical reception.
The venture was also notable as the first FIFA‑branded release after EA Sports’ split from the governing body, a moment that many observers believed could reshape the landscape of licensed soccer games.
Refactor’s earlier project, Football Simulator, had enjoyed modest success on Steam, earning positive early‑access reviews but never breaking past a peak of 188 concurrent players, a stark contrast to the lofty expectations set for its successor.
Industry analysts now wonder whether Netflix will double down on interactive entertainment or pivot away from cloud‑based titles, given the steep cost of development and the fragile market response.