Just five months after the early access release of the Skate reboot, Electronic Arts is “transforming” development studio Full Circle so it can “better support Skate’s long-term future and focus the team on the things that matter most to you.” And yes, let there be no doubt, that means layoffs.
“These shifts mean making changes to our team structure, and some roles will be impacted,” a message attributed to Full Circle states in the euphemistic style preferred by game studio executives.
“The teammates affected are talented colleagues and friends who helped build the foundation of Skate. Their creativity and dedication are deeply ingrained in what players experience today. This decision is not a reflection of their impact and we’re committed to supporting them through this transition.”
The free-to-play, multiplayer Skate isn’t putting up huge numbers on Steam, where it’s been averaging a few thousand concurrent players since the beginning of 2026. That doesn’t tell the whole story—Skate is also available on consoles and mobile devices—but it is a dramatic dropoff from its first few weeks of release, when it hit a peak concurrent player count of nearly 135,000.
Despite that, and the layoffs, Full Circle said work on Skate will continue: “We look forward to working with you as we move faster, listen more closely, and deliver consistently for all of you. Our commitment to Skate, and to the millions of players who believe in it, remains strong.”
In its most recent development update on Steam, posted on February 20, Full Circle laid out its plan for Skate season 3, which includes changes to how it will handle updates in the future. Upcoming features shared in future roadmaps will be defined as either “in development,” or “on the radar,” the latter being “ideas we’re exploring” that have no fixed timeline or even firm commitment that they’ll make it into the game.
“We’re doing this to be clear about where things stand—and about how we work,” the studio wrote. “The further out something is on the roadmap, the more room it has to shift, or sometimes, be shelved altogether. But we’d rather show you what we’re thinking, even while it’s shifting, than wait until everything is locked. That’s how we want to approach Early Access with you.”
Managing expectations for a game that’s in early access, where the future is always fluid, doesn’t sound unreasonable, but it definitely lands differently in light of today’s cuts. The number of people put out of work by the Full Circle layoffs has not been disclosed. I’ve reached out to EA for comment and will update if I receive a reply.
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