Behaviour Interactive säger upp personal efter att Dead by Daylight Senior Animator bekräftat plötslig avgång

Dead by Daylight developer Behaviour Interactive has confirmed a new round of layoffs, the studio's third in just over two years. The cuts were driven by declining demand for mobile and casual external development work, though the total number of affected employees has not been disclosed. Eurogamer first reported the layoffs after a former employee publicly announced his departure.

The layoffs came to light through a social media post by Jonathan Veiga, a senior animator on Dead by Daylight, who described his situation on April 22:

"Welp.. unfortunately, I was affected by the layoffs from Behaviour. I honestly didn't think it was going to happen to me. If anyone is looking for an animator, you can let me know via DMs. At least I'm still with Rivals of Aether. I'll be submitting my updated demo reel shortly."

— Jonathan Veiga

The studio is best known for Dead by Daylight, its co-op horror multiplayer title that has featured crossovers with franchises including Resident Evil, Halloween, and The Witcher. A sequel, Dead by Daylight 2, is not in development — creative director Dave Richard and head of partnerships Mathieu Cote confirmed to IGN that building one would not serve players who have already invested their time and money in the current game.

Behaviour Interactive also confirmed the job cuts to Game Developer later that day. A spokesperson explained that the studio had long maintained a business line around external development partnerships, taking on projects for mobile and casual publishers, and that demand in this area has contracted sharply.

"A portion of Behaviour Interactive's business has traditionally focused on external development partnerships. In recent months, demand for mobile and casual external development projects has declined. As we conclude our remaining engagements and do not foresee comparable opportunities in the near term, we have made the decision to part ways with some colleagues. Those decisions are never easy, and we are grateful for the contributions of the affected employees, who have helped shape Behaviour and support our partners over the years."

— Behaviour Interactive spokesperson

The current round follows two previous waves of cuts. In January 2024, Behaviour laid off 45 employees in Montreal, citing changing market conditions. In June 2024, up to 95 more workers were cut — 70 from the Montreal office — with the studio describing the move as a refocusing on its core strengths. Before those reductions, Behaviour had grown from 575 employees in 2019 to roughly 1,300 by 2024, through a series of acquisitions including Midwinter Entertainment, SockMoney Studios, Codeglue, and Fly Studio.

Behaviour has also continued expanding through the reductions. The studio recently announced the acquisition of Fun Pimps, the developer behind 7 Days to Die, and has Serious Sam: Shatterverse in development, which was revealed during a recent Xbox Partner Showcase.

I think the pattern of recurring layoffs alongside active acquisitions reveals a studio systematically shedding its contract development arm while building out its own slate of games. Dead by Daylight has continued to receive updates and new crossover content through each of Behaviour's three rounds of cuts, suggesting its core production has remained separate from the external development business being wound down.

I know the games industry has shed well over 20,000 jobs between 2023 and mid-2024 alone — a figure that spans studios of every size and publisher-owned teams alike. Behaviour's recurring reductions fit that broader pattern: a company expanding its game portfolio while gradually phasing out the contract pipeline that once occupied a significant portion of its headcount.

Read also, Dead by Daylight is set for a theatrical adaptation currently in development at Blumhouse-Atomic Monster, with David Leslie Johnson-McGoldrick and Alexandre Aja signed on as screenwriters.