Ubisoft ‘soft layoffs’ expected after latest announcement | Official Website of Louis Velazquez, entrepreneur, finance guy and tech innovator

The term “layoffs” is bad for business.

Consumer sentiment fell in September for the second consecutive month, partly due to worries about job security.

“After months of a frozen job market with little hiring outside of healthcare, people now see more industries turning to layoffs,” Navy Federal Credit Union Chief Economist Heather Long told CFO Dive.

2025 layoffs quick facts:

Government: 300,000 lost jobs forecasted for the year
Tech: 160,000 jobs lost
Retail: 80,487 jobs lost
Services: 53,438 jobs lost
Warehousing: 38,943 jobs lost
Total layoffs in 2025 could exceed 1 million for the first time since 2020.

While consumers are still spending, “they are on edge and will be ready to shut their wallets if layoffs pick up this fall and winter,” Long added.

Public-sector layoffs account for the largest share, thanks to the Trump administration’s soft war on the government. By last June, the federal government had laid off just 37,000 workers. Through June 2025, that number approached 300,000.

But tech layoffs have been the second most prominent form of downsizing this year.

As of October 23, 2025, there have been 575 layoffs at tech companies, affecting nearly 160,000 people. That translates to 540 tech-sector employees being let go every day.

But as bad as it has been so far this year, the tech layoff trend has been more muted than in 2024, when 1,115 tech companies laid off nearly 240,000 people, an average of 653 per day.

The game studio behind the popular “Star Wars Outlaws” game is going through a restructuring.

Photo by DIMITAR DILKOFF on Getty Images

Video game maker Ubisoft suspected of “soft layoffs” after latest announcement

The term “soft layoff” became part of the cultural lexicon last year amid the tech-jobs bloodbath, as big firms sought to right-size their headcounts following hiring sprees during the Covid years.

According to one definition, “soft layoffs occur when companies implement subtle strategies to make working conditions uncomfortable or undesirable, prompting employees to resign on their own.”

Some people believe that’s what video game maker Ubisoft is doing with its latest move.

Massive Entertainment, a Ubisoft game studio behind popular games including “The Division” and “Star Wars Outlaws,” took to LinkedIn to outline its latest employee strategy.

The company used euphemisms like “as part of our ongoing evolution” to “strengthen our roadmap” to describe a plan that introduces a “voluntary career transition program.”

This company says the program will give eligible employees “the opportunity to take their next career step on their own terms, supported by a comprehensive package that includes financial and career assistance.”

While the post never used the term “layoffs,” the response from commenters under the post suggests that was the message received.

People react to Ubisoft’s “career transition” message

LinkedIn user Jan Harasym summarized Massive Entertainment’s announcement in the best way he could understand it:

“Massive (Entertainment) laid off some people to focus purely on The Division games and key tech… to do this fairly, they gave those folks a voluntary exit option with severance and help finding new jobs.”

Isis Sousa, a creative art director, had a similar takeaway.

“Whenever a studio says they are restructuring these days, it means layoffs. It’s a trendy word now. But it’s great they gave you guys this package. Much strength to you all and a great next step,” Sousa said.

Most comments were in this vein, mentioning the word Ubisoft refused to use while offering condolences to the affected workers.

Video game layoffs have become prevalent

While video games could be considered part of the tech sector, the industry has had its own issues with layoffs recently.

The gaming industry has conducted over 100 layoffs, according to one tracker.

Ubisoft has made that list four times already this year. In January, the company cut headcount and closed three of its European offices, followed by layoffs at its subsidiary Red Storm Entertainment in July.