1047 Games has announced that it will cease active development on its two flagship projects, Empulse and Splitgate: Arena Reloaded, and will move both titles to a peer‑to‑peer (P2P) hosting model as of September 3. The decision marks a significant strategic pivot for the studio after a decade of focusing on live‑service shooter experiences. In a brief statement posted to X earlier today, the developers explained that the revenue generated by the two games no longer covers the ongoing expenses associated with maintaining dedicated server infrastructure.
While the studio had continued to subsidize those costs in an effort to give the titles a chance to grow their player bases, it ultimately concluded that the model had become "no longer sustainable." "We have loved working on these games, playing them, and building them with this community, and we wish we could continue supporting them," the announcement read. "Unfortunately, the financial realities force us to change course." Effective September 3, the dedicated servers and the associated matchmaking services for Empulse and Splitgate: Arena Reloaded will be shut down. Players will instead rely on a P2P system that uses a server browser, allowing individuals to host their own matches and find opponents directly. To give the community a final boost, Empulse will receive one last new map and a price reduction across all regions as part of what the studio has termed the game's "final update." This is not the first time 1047 Games has transitioned a title to peer‑to‑peer hosting.
The original Splitgate made the same switch last year after its dedicated servers were taken offline, and the game remains fully playable on both PC and consoles under the new architecture. The background to these moves is rooted in a turbulent period for the company. Splitgate 2 launched in June 2025 amid a wave of controversy, including the release of a politically charged "Make FPS Great Again" hat and a $145 cosmetic bundle that sparked backlash from the community. Within weeks of that launch, the studio announced an undisclosed round of layoffs, and a month later the game was rolled back to a beta state, prompting a second wave of staff reductions.
Empulse, billed as a 6‑v‑6 movement shooter and positioned as a spiritual successor to Titanfall, entered early access in June 2026. Its debut was quickly followed by multiple rounds of layoffs, reflecting the company's struggle to sustain development costs while the titles failed to achieve the necessary player numbers and revenue. Co‑founders Ian Proulx and Nicholas Bagamian addressed the shift in direction, noting that after ten years of building live‑service shooters, the studio's focus is now "changing". They emphasized that whatever the company creates next may look very different from the high‑tempo, server‑driven shooters that have defined its brand, but the core passion for game development remains unchanged.
"We started 1047 Games ten years ago because we love video games," the founders said. "Since then, more than 25 million people have played our games, and many of the people we've met along the way have become lifelong friends. After ten years of focusing on live‑service shooters, our focus is changing.
What we build next may look very different from what people expect from 1047 Games, but what has not changed is why we are here: we love making games. We have learned a lot over the years, and we will carry those lessons into what we build next." The public statement did not provide specific details about the current staffing situation, though it is known that 1047 Games has already undergone several rounds of layoffs, the most recent occurring in July, shortly after Empulse's early‑access launch.
It remains uncertain whether the latest announcement will lead to additional reductions in personnel. The transition to peer‑to‑peer hosting will have several practical implications for players. Without dedicated servers, matchmaking times may increase, especially in regions with fewer active participants.
Players will need to rely on the in‑game server browser to locate suitable matches, and host migration could become more common as individual players' connections fluctuate. However, the P2P model also reduces the operational costs for the studio, potentially allowing them to allocate resources toward future projects or to support the community through updates and bug fixes. From a broader industry perspective, 1047 Games' move reflects a growing awareness among developers that the live‑service model, while profitable for some blockbuster titles, can be financially precarious for mid‑tier studios. Maintaining dedicated server farms, providing continuous content updates, and supporting large player bases require a steady stream of revenue that not all games can sustain.
Looking ahead, the founders hinted at a new direction for the studio, though they offered few specifics. Their emphasis on "learning" and "changing focus" suggests that 1047 Games may explore genres or business models outside the traditional live‑service shooter space.
Possibilities could include single‑player narrative experiences, smaller‑scale multiplayer titles with optional server hosting, or even ventures into emerging platforms such as cloud gaming or virtual reality. In summary, 1047 Games is winding down active development on Empulse and Splitgate: Arena Reloaded, shifting both games to a peer‑to‑peer hosting framework as of September 3. The decision follows a period of financial strain, community controversy, and multiple layoffs.
While the studio's future direction remains vague, the founders reaffirm their commitment to game creation and hint at a potentially transformative next chapter for the company.