Restructuring at Illuvium

Ethereum gaming franchise Illuvium has undergone a company restructuring, resulting in layoffs and pay cut options for core contributors who can also receive wages in the gaming IP’s own token.

The downsizing follows the release of three interconnected games last year—Overworld, Arena, and Zero—across various genres. Despite the ambitious vision, community feedback was less than positive after years of development.

In December, co-founder Kieran Warwick acknowledged valid concerns regarding the gameplay, prompting necessary changes. This included capping wages at $85,000 and other cost-reduction measures.

This week, Warwick announced that further significant cuts must occur:
> 💥Hard Decisions Shape the Brightest Futures💫
> Major updates on the Illuvium team, strategy, and future plans are detailed in the message from @KieranWarwick! 👇
> — Illuvium (@illuviumio) February 19, 2025

“We made the difficult decision to restructure our core contributor team to bring our monthly burn rate closer to $500,000,” Warwick stated in a Tuesday announcement. “We want to extend our sincere gratitude to everyone affected by these changes.”

The announcement on X (formerly Twitter) elaborated that some employees agreed to take pay cuts, while others opted to receive their salaries in the ILV token instead of the USDC stablecoin. The statement hinted at layoffs in pursuit of a leaner operation but didn’t specify this explicitly.

Community Manager DickKingz said the team has reduced from 100-150 contributors to 66. “The trim to 66 included many of my teammates and friends, and I hate to see them go. Hopefully it’s only bye for now, and in the future, we can bring many back.”

Illuvium has not yet responded to inquiries from Decrypt. As a result of the restructuring and other operational cost-cutting measures, Illuvium’s burn rate is now closer to its goal of $500,000—down from $900,000 in December. This provides a 24-month runway for continued development.

Warwick previously indicated plans to seek new funding around March, but confirmed that they are not looking to raise funds at present. He has also proposed focusing on one game at a time, suggesting reworking Overworld into a streamlined MMO and cutting down on in-game microtransactions.

The 24-month runway aims to complete the auto-battler, start reworking Overworld, and keep the community engaged. “This is step one in the rebuild. Now we have the runway, and it will continue to be extended,” Warwick stated on X. “Enormous updates are coming mid-next month: Auto drone runs, multiplayer servers, and leaderboards reactivated.”

“28-3 down with two minutes to go in the third quarter,” he added, likening the project to a struggling football team. “We’re about to run this shit back so hard.”

Edited by Andrew Hayward