Following a huge wave of layoffs at League of Legends and Valorant creator Riot Games, the company’s spinoff developer Riot Forge has officially been shuttered, meaning no more LoL-inspired indies will be coming after Bandle Tale.
Riot Forge’s closure follows the news that Riot has laid off 11% of its workforce across League of Legends, Valorant, and other live-service titles, meaning around 530 roles have been eliminated overnight.
Regarding Riot Forge, the company’s post from Monday January 22 reads “we’re ending new game development under Riot Forge after the upcoming release of Bandle Tale: A League of Legends Story.”
“Forge was an experiment to see what would happen when Rioters partnered with their favorite indie devs and let them loose on Runeterra with their unique viewpoints, styles, and expertise. Across six titles spanning different game genres, regions, and characters, it’s been inspiring to see what these devs created in partnership with the Forge team.
“We’re proud of what we’ve done together to bring these stories to life, but it’s time to refocus our efforts on the ambitious projects underway internally at Riot.”
Similarly, spinoff CCG Legends of Runeterra will also see huge changes. “Despite critical achievements and the role it’s played in helping to build out the world of Runeterra, LoR has faced financial challenges since launch, costing significantly more to develop and support than it generates.
“In response, we’re reducing the size of our team and renewing our focus on The Path of Champions. This shift allows the team to experiment more in the PvE space, concentrating on the game mode where players have been spending the most time.”
“For most of our history, we’ve managed to avoid days like this, but this decision is critical for the future of Riot,” the post continues. “This isn’t to appease shareholders or to hit a quarterly earnings number—it’s a necessity.
“Over the past few years, as Riot more than doubled in headcount, we spread our efforts across more and more projects without sharp enough razors to decide what players needed most. The adjustments we’re making aim to focus us on the areas that have the greatest impact on your experience while reducing investment on things that don’t.” You can read Riot’s full email to affected staff here, and more information on Legends of Runeterra here.
The Bandle Tale: A League of Legends Story release date is set for Wednesday February 21. After this, Riot Forge will cease operations.