More than two years into developing a AAA-budget video game called Transformers: Reactivate, London-based Splash Damage announced yesterday on X that it’s scrapping the project. 

Splash plans to cut jobs in the coming months as it recalibrates its slate without this key build in the mix. The studio has not specified how many roles will be affected, but it currently employs more than 300 people, according to its LinkedIn profile.

Transformers: Reactivate was first unveiled at the Game Awards ceremony in 2022, and its AAA budget category starts at US$50 million. The post-apocalyptic story for this online action title for PCs and home consoles was set on Earth, where the Autobot and Decepticon factions are forced to team up to defeat a new enemy called “Legion”. 

Gameplay clips and unfinished cut-scenes of Reactivate that have been leaked on the internet show Bumblebee driving around war-torn cityscapes and fighting against a wide range of mechanical creatures while he defends a power node. 

Concerns about the game’s progress first cropped up in 2023, when Splash announced that it was delaying the rollout of a beta version until 2024 and shifting development from Unreal Engine 4 to Unreal Engine 5—a process that can involve several months of updating or constructing new assets and code. With all of its tie-in toys ready in 2023, brand owner Hasbro was forced to launch this product range without the game title in market to support it.