1047 Games has announced that it will cease active development on its two flagship titles, Empulse and Splitgate: Arena Reloaded. Beginning on September 3, the company will retire the dedicated‑server infrastructure for both games and replace it with a peer‑to‑peer (P2P) networking model, allowing players to host matches themselves via a built‑in server browser.
This decision marks a significant strategic pivot for the studio, which has spent the past decade focusing on live‑service, multiplayer shooters. In a brief statement posted to X earlier today, the studio explained that the revenue generated by the two games no longer covers the ongoing expenses of maintaining dedicated servers. While the team had continued to subsidize those costs in hopes that the titles would eventually achieve a self‑sustaining player base, the financial reality has become "no longer sustainable," according to the announcement. "We have loved working on these games, playing them, and building them with this community, and we wish we could continue supporting them," the developers wrote.
"Unfortunately, the economics simply don’t work out any longer." From September 3 onward, matchmaking and dedicated‑server services will be shut down for both Empulse and Splitgate: Arena Reloaded. Players will instead rely on a P2P system that uses a server browser to locate and join games hosted by other community members.
As part of what the studio has labeled the "final update" for Empulse, the game will receive one last new map and a price reduction across all regions, giving existing players a modest discount before the transition. This move mirrors a similar transition that 1047 Games carried out with the original Splitgate last year. After the dedicated servers for that title were decommissioned, the game shifted to P2P hosting and remains fully playable on PC and console platforms.
The company appears to be applying the same cost‑saving formula to its newer projects. Splitgate 2, released in June 2025, quickly became a lightning rod for controversy. The launch featured a "Make FPS Great Again" hat reminiscent of political slogans, as well as a $145 cosmetic bundle that sparked backlash from the community.
Within weeks of the release, the studio announced a round of layoffs, the size of which was not disclosed. A month later, the developers pushed the title back into a beta phase and initiated a second wave of staff reductions. Empulse, marketed as a 6‑v‑6 movement shooter and spiritual heir to the Titanfall series, entered early access in June 2026.
The game’s debut was followed by multiple rounds of layoffs within a matter of weeks, underscoring the financial strain the studio has been under. Co‑founders Ian Proulx and Nicholas Bagamian used the announcement to signal a broader change in direction for the company.
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 anything 1047 Games has previously delivered. "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 specifics about the current staffing situation, but it is worth noting that the studio has already undergone several rounds of layoffs, the most recent occurring in July, just weeks after Empulse launched. Whether the September announcement will trigger additional reductions remains uncertain.
Industry observers see this shift as part of a larger trend where mid‑size developers reevaluate the viability of live‑service models, especially when player retention and monetization fall short of expectations. Maintaining dedicated server farms is costly, and without a steady stream of income from in‑game purchases or subscriptions, the financial burden can quickly outweigh the benefits. For the player communities of Empulse and Splitgate: Arena Reloaded, the transition to peer‑to‑peer hosting means that matchmaking will become more reliant on the availability of player‑hosted sessions.
While this can lead to longer wait times or less stable connections in some regions, it also gives dedicated fans the ability to keep the games alive without corporate support. The final map for Empulse and the price cut are intended as a goodwill gesture, offering a small token of appreciation for those who have stuck with the title throughout its early‑access period. Looking ahead, 1047 Games has hinted that its next venture could diverge sharply from the multiplayer‑shooter formula that defined its brand.
The founders emphasized that their core motivation—creating games they are passionate about—remains unchanged. Whether that passion will manifest in a new genre, a single‑player experience, or perhaps a hybrid model that blends live elements with more sustainable infrastructure is something only time will reveal. In summary, the studio is winding down active development on Empulse and Splitgate: Arena Reloaded, moving both games to a peer‑to‑peer framework as of September 3, providing a final map and price reduction for Empulse, and signaling a strategic departure from the live‑service shooter market after a decade of operation.
The upcoming months will likely clarify how the company reallocates resources and whether further staffing changes will accompany this new direction.