Crystal Dynamics, the studio behind the Tomb Raider series, announced yesterday (March 26, 2025) that they have laid off 17 employees. The company stated this decision was made “to better align our current business needs and the studio’s future success” and emphasized it “is not a reflection of the dedication or ability of those affected“.

This morning, Crystal Dynamics made the difficult decision to reduce our workforce by 17 talented team members. We did not make this decision lightly. Ultimately, this step was necessary to better align our current (cont) https://t.co/wKWtl5Be8S pic.twitter.com/q482GyteoJ

— Crystal Dynamics (@CrystalDynamics) March 26, 2025

The studio, which is currently co-developing Perfect Dark alongside The Initiative and working on an untitled Tomb Raider game with Amazon, assured that these layoffs will “not alter our current project plans“. Crystal Dynamics is providing support for affected employees through transition packages and opportunity outreach.

This marks the second round of layoffs for Crystal Dynamics in recent years, following a previous reduction of 10 employees in 2023. The studio has faced challenges since the underwhelming performance of Marvel’s Avengers in 2020, which was eventually delisted from stores in September 2023.

Crystal Dynamics was acquired by Embracer Group in 2022 after previously being owned by Square Enix. Embracer Group has been implementing layoffs across multiple studios since the start of 2025, though Amazon’s gaming boss had previously stated that Crystal Dynamics was “fairly sheltered” from the wider issues at Embracer.

With approximately 300 employees at the studio, these recent layoffs represent less than 10% of Crystal Dynamics’ workforce.