Supermassive Games, the studio behind Until Dawn and the Dark Pictures Anthology, has announced it will lay off as many as 36 employees in a new round of job cuts.
In an official statement shared on the company's social media channels, Supermassive also confirmed a delay for its anticipated sci-fi horror title, Directive 8020, pushing its release window to the first half of 2026.
Announcing the workforce reductions, the studio stated it had to restructure its teams to "better align" with the "challenging and constantly shifting landscape" of game development. These layoffs follow a similar announcement in March 2024, when approximately 90 staff members were let go.
Supermassive reported having about 350 employees in 2023, meaning roughly one-third of its workforce has been let go over the past year and a half.
"We are staying committed to our upcoming projects and have decided to shift the launch of Directive 8020 to the first half of 2026," Supermassive stated. "The response to the game has been incredible, and this extra time will allow us to craft the best possible experience for our players. We sincerely thank our community for their continued patience and support."
A standalone title within the Dark Pictures Anthology, Directive 8020 was first hinted at in early 2022 among a list of potential future entries. It was officially revealed later that year in a trailer following The Dark Pictures: The Devil In Me. Now, three years later, fans are still awaiting its arrival.
A statement from Supermassive Games. pic.twitter.com/Vom1CSGYGs
— Supermassive Games (@SuperMGames) July 22, 2025
The Dark Pictures Anthology launched in 2019 with the nautical ghost story Man of Medan, followed by the period horror Little Hope in 2020, and the Iraq-based House of Ashes in 2021. The murder-mystery hotel title The Devil in Me arrived in 2022, with the virtual reality spin-off Switchback VR releasing a year later.
Since then, development on new series entries seems to have decelerated. Directive 8020 is now slated to arrive at least three years after the franchise's last main installment and is being positioned as a more independent story. Supermassive has indicated it is using the extended timeline to enhance the series' gameplay, and connections to prior games—like those involving the recurring Curator character—are expected to be less prominent.
In the interim, Supermassive continues development on the postponed Little Nightmares 3, which is currently scheduled for release on October 10. The studio has confirmed that today's layoffs do not impact this project.
