1047 Games has announced that it will cease active development on its two flagship titles, Empulse and Splitgate: Arena Reloaded. The studio explained that, as of September 3, both games will abandon their dedicated‑server infrastructure and move to a peer‑to‑peer (P2P) model with a built‑in server browser, allowing players to host and locate matches themselves.
This decision marks a significant pivot for the company, which has spent the past decade concentrating on live‑service shooter experiences. In a brief statement posted on X earlier today, the developers said that the revenue generated by the two titles no longer justifies the ongoing expense of maintaining dedicated servers. While the studio had continued to subsidize those costs in the hopes that the games might eventually become self‑sustaining, it ultimately concluded that the financial model had become "no longer sustainable." The announcement expressed genuine regret, noting, "We have loved working on these games, playing them, and building them with this community, and we wish we could continue supporting them." Effective September 3, the dedicated‑server back‑ends and the associated matchmaking services for Empulse and Splitgate: Arena Reloaded will be shut down.
Players will be redirected to a P2P system that relies on a server‑browser interface, enabling them to locate and join games hosted by other community members. As a parting gesture, Empulse will receive a final new map and a universal price reduction across all regions, which the studio described as the "final update" for the title. This move mirrors a similar transition that the original Splitgate underwent last year.
After its dedicated servers were retired, the game shifted to a peer‑to‑peer architecture and remains fully playable on PC and consoles. The precedent suggests that 1047 Games believes the P2P approach can keep a game alive long after the official support infrastructure is withdrawn. The background to this shift is rooted in a turbulent period for the studio. Splitgate 2 launched in June 2025 amid a wave of controversy, including the introduction of a politically charged "Make FPS Great Again" hat and a high‑priced $145 cosmetic bundle.
Within weeks of release, the company announced a round of layoffs, the size of which was not disclosed. A subsequent month saw the game pushed back into a beta state and a second wave of staff reductions, further destabilizing the development pipeline.
Empulse, marketed as a 6‑v‑6 movement‑focused shooter and positioned as a spiritual successor to Titanfall, entered early access in June 2026. Its launch was quickly followed by multiple layoffs, indicating that the title struggled to find a sustainable audience and financial footing. The rapid succession of staff cuts highlighted the broader challenges the studio faced in maintaining two large‑scale live‑service projects simultaneously. Co‑founders Ian Proulx and Nicholas Bagamian addressed the strategic shift in their statement, emphasizing that after ten years of building live‑service shooters, the studio’s focus is evolving.
They noted, "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." The founders reflected on the company’s origins, recalling that more than 25 million players have engaged with their games over the past decade and that many community members have become lifelong friends. While the announcement did not explicitly detail future staffing plans, it arrived on the heels of another round of layoffs that took place in July, shortly after Empulse’s early‑access debut.
It remains uncertain whether the recent decision to sunset dedicated servers will trigger additional reductions or if the studio will stabilize its workforce as it reorients its development philosophy. The transition to peer‑to‑peer hosting carries both technical and community implications. On the technical side, P2P can reduce operational costs dramatically, as the need for costly server farms and continuous matchmaking services is eliminated. However, it also places greater responsibility on individual players to host stable sessions, which can introduce variability in latency, connection stability, and overall game performance.
The inclusion of a server‑browser tool aims to mitigate these issues by giving users more control over which hosts they join, but the experience will inevitably differ from the polished, centrally managed matchmaking that dedicated servers provide. From a community perspective, the shift may be bittersweet.
Long‑time fans who have invested time and money into Empulse and Splitgate: Arena Reloaded will lose the convenience of automated matchmaking and may need to coordinate more actively with friends or public host lists. On the other hand, the final map for Empulse and the price cut represent a goodwill gesture, offering players a tangible benefit as the games enter their final phase of support. Looking ahead, 1047 Games’ declaration that its next projects could diverge significantly from its shooter‑centric legacy suggests a willingness to explore new genres or business models.
The studio’s accumulated experience—spanning the development, launch, and post‑launch phases of multiple live‑service titles—could inform future endeavors that prioritize sustainability, player engagement, or innovative gameplay mechanics without the heavy overhead of dedicated server maintenance. In summary, 1047 Games is winding down active development on Empulse and Splitgate: Arena Reloaded, moving both games to a peer‑to‑peer framework as of September 3. This decision reflects broader financial pressures and a strategic pivot away from the live‑service shooter model that defined the studio for a decade.
While the transition may present challenges for players accustomed to dedicated servers, the company’s final updates and price reductions aim to honor the community that supported these titles. The future direction of 1047 Games remains to be seen, but the founders reaffirm their core passion for game creation, hinting at potentially new and unexpected projects on the horizon.