Riot Games’ 2XKO Layoffs Highlight Challenges in Expanding into New Genres

Riot Games has significantly reduced the development team for its free-to-play fighting game 2XKO, laying off around 80 staff members, as reported. In an official statement, executive producer Tom Cannon noted that the game had not attracted a sufficient player base.

Set in the League of Legends universe and featuring characters from Riot’s popular MOBA, 2XKO was a passion project that underwent a lengthy, 10-year development process, including several reboots. These layoffs come just three weeks after the game’s launch on January 20.

Cannon emphasized that this decision was not made lightly. “As we expanded from PC to console, we observed consistent trends in player engagement with 2XKO. While the game has found a dedicated core audience, the overall momentum hasn’t reached the level necessary to sustain a team of this size in the long run.”

He mentioned that a “smaller, focused team” would continue to implement “key improvements” to the game and support tournament organizers and the 2026 Competitive Series.

“I want to be clear about something that matters deeply to me,” Cannon stated. “The individuals who contributed to 2XKO dedicated years of creativity, care, and belief into this game. Taking creative risks like this is challenging, and their work is both real and meaningful.”

Designer and producer Patrick Miller shared his experience on BlueSky, saying, “Ten years on 2XKO, 12 at Riot and I got laid off with 30 min notice lol. Gonna take some time.”

These layoffs highlight the challenges of entering the fighting game arena, even for a developer with Riot’s extensive resources and the expertise of the 2XKO team (Cannon, along with his brother Tony, founded Evo, the leading esports tournament for fighting games). While fighting games have a passionate fanbase and major titles like Tekken, Street Fighter, and Mortal Kombat perform well, the subculture is niche and fiercely protective, with a few specialist developers like Capcom, Bandai Namco, Arc System Works, and NetherRealm dominating the genre for decades.

Riot acquired the Cannons’ studio Radiant Entertainment in 2016 and first revealed its League of Legends-themed fighting game in 2019. After years of refining the game’s aesthetics and mechanics, 2XKO launched but faced criticism from fighting game enthusiasts for its complex mechanics and limited character roster.

Riot has struggled to branch out from its MOBA roots and translate League of Legends’ success into other genres. While some spinoffs like the auto-battler Teamfight Tactics and the shooter Valorant have seen varying degrees of success, several other projects have been canceled or stalled in development. Riot announced an MMO set in the League of Legends universe in 2020, after years of speculation, but then “reset” the project in 2024. In 2020, Riot also acquired Hytale, a competitor to Minecraft, only to cancel it in 2025 after a decade of development. Hytale was later bought back by its original developers and released in early access in January.

At least 2XKO remains operational, with a smaller team still working on it at Riot. The studio’s journey to diversify its portfolio continues.