Refactor Games, the studio that worked on *FIFA World Cup: Launch Edition* for Netflix Games, has laid off most of its team weeks after the soccer game's launch.
Studio head Nathan Burba confirmed to GamesBeat that 85% of Refactor's staff were let go. The confirmation followed public LinkedIn posts from former employees who said the studio had been hit by layoffs after the Netflix-exclusive FIFA game shipped.
The cuts appear to leave Refactor operating in a reduced form rather than fully closed. That distinction is important because early employee posts described the whole studio being let go, while Burba's figure points to a smaller team remaining after the layoffs.
Funding was pulled after the Netflix launch
Former Refactor 3D artist and motion capture expert Joseph Civitate wrote on LinkedIn that the studio's next project lost funding after *FIFA World Cup: Launch Edition* released. According to the post quoted by multiple outlets, he said employees across departments were affected "due to the funding on our next project being cancelled."
Art director Barclay Chantel also wrote that "Delphi just pulled the plug on Refactor studios right after we shipped the FIFA World Cup game for Netflix," adding that the entire studio had been let go. Game Developer reported the same employee claims and said it had contacted Delphi Interactive and Refactor for comment.
The game launched in June as a Netflix Games exclusive. A Netflix Tudum post describes *FIFA World Cup: Launch Edition* as a soccer simulation controlled with a phone and played on TV, with all 48 tournament teams, 1,248 players and 16 stadiums from the 2026 World Cup.
Netflix's post credits Delphi Interactive as developer and publisher. Refactor, however, was also publicly tied to the project, and the layoffs now turn what should have been a high-profile licensed launch into another bleak entry in the games industry's job-cut streak.
The timing is especially sharp because *FIFA World Cup: Launch Edition* was positioned as FIFA's first major post-EA game project around the men's World Cup. Instead, the studio behind the work is now dealing with a dramatic reduction in headcount less than two months after release.