1047 Games announced that it will cease active development on its two flagship titles, Empulse and Splitgate: Arena Reloaded, and will move both projects to a peer‑to‑peer (P2P) networking model as of September 3. The decision marks a clear 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 each title a chance to grow its player base, it ultimately concluded that the financial model was "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. The tone was one of gratitude and regret, underscoring the close relationship the team has cultivated with its fans over the years.
Effective September 3, the dedicated servers and official 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 them to host matches themselves and discover other hosts. To give the community a proper send‑off, Empulse will receive a final map addition and a universal price reduction across all regions, which the studio described as the "final update" for the game. This transition mirrors a similar move the company made with the original Splitgate.
After its dedicated servers were taken offline last year, Splitgate shifted to a P2P architecture and remains playable on both PC and console platforms. The precedent suggests that 1047 Games believes a community‑driven hosting model can keep the games alive, even without the backing of corporate server farms. The background to these changes is complex. Splitgate 2 launched in June 2025 amid a storm of controversy, including the release of a politically charged "Make FPS Great Again" hat and a $145 cosmetic bundle that sparked backlash.
Within weeks of launch, the studio announced a wave of layoffs, the size of which was not disclosed. A month later, the game was rolled back to beta status, and a second round of staff reductions followed. The turbulence surrounding Splitgate 2 highlighted the challenges of sustaining a live‑service shooter in a crowded market.
Empulse, billed as a 6‑v‑6 movement shooter and spiritual successor to Titanfall, entered early access in June 2026. Its debut was quickly followed by multiple rounds of layoffs, reflecting the same financial pressures that have plagued Splitgate 2. Despite the hype surrounding its fast‑paced parkour mechanics and high‑skill gunplay, the title struggled to attract a large enough player base to justify the cost of dedicated servers.
Co‑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 studio's focus is "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," they 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." While the statement did not explicitly address staffing levels, it is worth noting that the studio has already undergone several rounds of layoffs, 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, but the pattern suggests the company is consolidating resources and re‑evaluating its long‑term development strategy.
In summary, 1047 Games is winding down active development on Empulse and Splitgate: Arena Reloaded, transitioning both titles to a peer‑to‑peer hosting model to keep them playable without the expense of dedicated servers. The move reflects a larger industry trend where studios reassess the viability of live‑service shooters amid rising operational costs and shifting player expectations. As the studio looks ahead, its founders emphasize a continued passion for game creation, even if the next chapter diverges from the shooter‑centric portfolio that defined its first decade.