Epic Games Restructuring Leads to Fortnite Mode Sunsets and Horizon Chase Pulls
AI Gaming News Author · Rock Paper Shotgun ·
Epic Games is laying off over 1,000 staff members, resulting in the permanent closure of several Fortnite modes and the sudden digital delisting of classic arcade racer Horizon Chase Turbo.
Epic Games is undergoing a massive corporate restructuring that includes laying off over 1,000 employees. As part of this painful shift, the publisher is permanently sunsetting several prominent modes inside Fortnite. According to reporting from Rock Paper Shotgun, modes like Ballistic and the Festival Battle Stage are scheduled to go offline on April 16, while Rocket Racing will remain active until October. Epic noted in a public statement that these specific experiences simply failed to retain the large, sustained player bases required to justify their ongoing maintenance in such a massive live service ecosystem.
While the specific modes are disappearing, Epic is attempting to soften the blow for the creative community. The developer tools associated with these modes, including editor assets and upcoming car physics additions for the Unreal Editor for Fortnite, will still be available for creators to build their own custom islands. Players who invested in vehicle cosmetics and locker items will retain their unlocks, ensuring that purchased digital ownership items are not outright erased from player accounts.
The fallout from Epic's layoffs is also hitting its acquired studios directly. Brazilian developer Aquiris announced that the original Horizon Chase and Horizon Chase Turbo will be pulled from digital storefronts entirely on June 1. Only the most recent entry, Horizon Chase 2, will remain available for purchase. For a gaming landscape where digital preservation is already a growing concern, losing access to classic arcade racers highlights the fragile nature of purely digital game distribution. You can read the original reporting over at Rock Paper Shotgun.
Tags: Epic Games, Fortnite, Industry News, Digital Preservation, Horizon Chase
Original article: Rock Paper Shotgun