1047 Games has announced that it will cease active development on its two flagship titles, Empulse and Splitgate: Arena Reloaded, and will move both experiences to a peer‑to‑peer (P2P) networking model as of September 3. The decision marks a clear pivot for the studio, which has spent the past decade concentrating on live‑service shooter projects.
In a brief statement posted to X earlier today, the developers explained that the revenue generated by the two games no longer justifies the expense of maintaining dedicated server infrastructure. While the company had previously subsidised those costs in an effort to give the titles a chance to grow their player bases, it now acknowledges that continuing to do so is "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 studio wrote, underscoring the bittersweet nature of the announcement. Effective September 3, the dedicated servers and official matchmaking services for both Empulse and Splitgate: Arena Reloaded will be shut down. Players will instead rely on a P2P system that incorporates a server browser, allowing individuals to host their own matches and discover others’ sessions.
As a parting gesture, Empulse will receive a final new map and a universal price reduction across all regions, which the team has labeled the "final update" for the game. This transition mirrors a similar move made with the original Splitgate last year. After its dedicated servers were retired, Splitgate shifted to a P2P architecture and remains fully playable today, even on console platforms.
The background to these changes is worth noting. 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 community backlash.
Within a month of launch, 1047 Games announced a round of layoffs whose size was not disclosed. A further month later the studio placed the title back into a beta state and initiated a second wave of staff reductions. Empulse, billed as a 6‑v‑6 movement shooter and often described as a spiritual successor to Titanfall, entered early access in June 2026. Its debut was quickly followed by multiple rounds of layoffs, reflecting the financial pressures the studio has been feeling.
Founders Ian Proulx and Nicholas Bagamian used the announcement to signal a broader strategic shift. After ten years of building live‑service shooters, they said the company’s focus is now "changing" and that future projects may look very different from what fans have come to expect from 1047 Games. "We started 1047 Games ten years ago because we love video games," the co‑founders wrote. "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 statement did not provide specifics about the current staffing situation, although the studio has already undergone several layoff rounds, the most recent occurring in July—just weeks after Empulse’s early‑access launch. It remains uncertain whether the latest announcement will trigger additional reductions.
For the player community, the shift to P2P hosting means that while official matchmaking will disappear, the games will remain accessible. Players will need to rely on the in‑game server browser to locate matches, and the quality of connections may vary depending on host hardware and network conditions.
The final map addition to Empulse and the price cut are intended to give fans a small token of appreciation before the official support ends. Industry observers see this move as part of a larger trend where mid‑size studios reassess the viability of live‑service models, especially when server costs outpace revenue. Maintaining dedicated servers for multiplayer shooters is expensive, and without a steady influx of paying players, the economics can quickly become untenable.
Looking ahead, 1047 Games has hinted that its next venture could depart from the shooter genre entirely, potentially exploring new gameplay mechanics, narrative‑driven experiences, or even different platforms. The founders emphasized that the core passion for game creation remains unchanged, suggesting that whatever comes next will still reflect the studio’s commitment to quality and community engagement. In summary, 1047 Games is winding down active development on Empulse and Splitgate: Arena Reloaded, transitioning both to peer‑to‑peer hosting, offering a final content update for Empulse, and signaling a strategic pivot away from live‑service shooters after a decade of focus. The community can still enjoy the games via the new P2P system, while the studio looks toward a new direction for its future projects.