People Can Fly reportedly cuts 30 devs as scope of Square Enix game shrinks

People Can Fly has reportedly laid off over 30 developers working on an unannounced Square Enix game.

In an internal email shared with Kotaku, People Can Fly development director Adam Alker said the cuts were being made due to budget limitations and the shrinking scope of the project.

A further 20 people working on the game, which is codenamed Project Gemini, have also been reallocated to other projects at the Polish studio, it’s claimed.

A source told Kotaku that the length of Gemini’s campaign will be shorter than previously planned and its enemy roster will be reduced too.

“We understand that this decision impacts each of you, and we want to express our gratitude for your hard work, dedication, and contributions thus far,” Alker said in his email to affected staff.

“To those individuals transitioning out of the studio due to these changes, we extend our sincere appreciation for the skills and expertise you brought to the team. We will keep our fingers crossed for your next steps in game dev and offer all our support.”

People Can Fly, which celebrated its 20th anniversary in 2022 and was owned by Epic Games from 2012-2015, is the developer behind Painkiller, Bulletstorm, Gears of War: Judgment, and Square Enix’s Outriders.

As of July 2023, Gemini was one of eight titles in development across People Can Fly’s studios.

That same month, the company announced it had signed a deal to develop a new title for Xbox Game Studios. The company said Project Maverick would be fully funded by IP owner Microsoft and would have a $30-50 million budget.

People Can Fly released Bulletstorm VR last week for PlayStation VR2, Meta Quest and SteamVR.