Gaming Industry Shockwave: Metal: Hellsinger Studio The Outsiders Shut Down in Funcom Restructuring

In a sobering development underscoring the ongoing volatility of the video game industry, The Outsiders, the acclaimed studio behind the rhythm-action FPS hit Metal: Hellsinger, has been completely shut down. The closure of the 10-year-old Stockholm-based developer, which was operating as Funcom Stockholm, comes as a direct consequence of a recent wave of Funcom layoffs and a broader restructuring across the parent company’s global operations. This news arrives just months after Funcom celebrated the launch of its new open-world survival MMO, Dune: Awakening, which the company touted as its biggest release in its 32-year history.

The Outsiders’ Closure Confirmed by Co-Founder David Goldfarb

The somber announcement was made public by David Goldfarb, co-founder and Creative Director of The Outsiders, who took to social media on October 6, 2025, to confirm the studio’s fate. His statement captured the profound personal and professional toll of the decision, including the now widely quoted phrase reflecting the team’s emotional state.

Strong Industry Layoffs Continue: The Human Cost of Corporate Shifts

Goldfarb’s statement read in part:

• “I have not had much time to process the news but all of us at The Outsiders and Funcom Stockholm have been affected by the layoffs at Funcom and our 10 year old studio will be closing.”
• “It will always be a high point for me personally and I will be forever grateful we got to make it [Metal: Hellsinger] and for the wonderful team and partnerships that made it happen.”
• “We had hoped to do something even better this time—things don’t always go the way you hope. But we are not giving up, and we are going to try to continue on in some new form… Change is always tough and right now we are all hurting.”

This candid sentiment highlights the brutal reality for many talented developers in a sector frequently lauded for its record revenues yet plagued by continuous large-scale job cuts. The closure of a studio responsible for a successful and critically praised title like Metal: Hellsinger—which sold over one million copies within its first two months of release in 2022—serves as a stark reminder that even a proven hit does not guarantee a team’s long-term security in the current corporate climate.

Funcom’s Strategic Pivot: Focusing on Live Service and ‘Dune: Awakening’

The context for The Outsiders’ shutdown is rooted in the larger strategic shift within parent company Funcom. The initial wave of layoffs, announced the previous week, was framed as a studio restructuring designed to “focus our resources from across projects and studios” as the company transitions its new flagship title, Dune: Awakening, from development to long-term live operation and prepares for a major console release in 2026. The rationale provided by Funcom centers on optimizing internal resources for sustained content releases, features, and enhancements for the Arrakis-based survival MMO.

However, the decision to close a creative and proven subsidiary like The Outsiders, which was reportedly working on a new project, has been met with significant criticism from the gaming community and industry analysts. Many question the necessity of shuttering a successful studio to consolidate resources, especially following the commercial triumph of its most recent game. The narrative of laying off staff immediately following a celebrated “biggest launch” has become an all too common and frustrating trend in modern game development.

The Legacy of Metal: Hellsinger and Its Team’s Resilience

The Outsiders, originally founded in 2015, had already demonstrated remarkable resilience. Goldfarb specifically referenced a “near-death studio experience” years earlier after their previous project, Darkborn, was cancelled. It was the team’s loyalty and determination in the face of that adversity that ultimately led to the creation of Metal: Hellsinger, a game praised for its innovative blend of rhythm mechanics and visceral first-person shooter action, all driven by a powerhouse heavy metal soundtrack featuring an all-star cast of vocalists.

A Creative Milestone Now an Industry Casualty

The critical and commercial success of Metal: Hellsinger solidified the studio’s reputation for high-quality, genre-bending design. Key elements that contributed to the game’s high reviews and strong sales figures include:

• Innovative Gameplay Loop: The requirement to shoot and dash to the beat of the music creates an unparalleled sense of flow and player engagement.
• Premium Audio Production: Featuring vocal performances from metal legends like Serj Tankian (System of a Down), Matt Heafy (Trivium), and Alissa White-Gluz (Arch Enemy), boosting its appeal to a high-value, dedicated audience.
• High Replayability: Players are driven to master the rhythm and chase high scores in a compelling descent through the Hells.

The closure now leaves the future of any potential sequels or new IP from this talented team in limbo. For fans of the game, the emotional fallout is a mixture of sadness for the developers and frustration over the loss of a promising new franchise.

Future Outlook for the Developers and the Wider Gaming Ecosystem

In his closing remarks, Goldfarb offered a glimmer of hope, stating that the team is “going to try to continue on in some new form” and appealed directly to the industry for assistance. He requested outreach for “business leads, placement for employees, guidance, whatever it is.” This plea is unfortunately a common refrain across the tech layoff and game development sector, as thousands of highly skilled professionals are forced to search for new employment following corporate decisions.

The Broader Industry Trend of Contraction

The closure of The Outsiders is part of a much larger, global trend of contraction in the gaming industry that has seen significant layoffs affect numerous studios in the 2024-2025 period. Analysts point to several interconnected factors driving this instability:

1. Post-Pandemic Market Correction: The hiring boom that accompanied lockdown-era growth has been followed by an aggressive correction.
2. Live Service Focus: A growing emphasis by major publishers on long-term, high-revenue live service games often leads to the deprioritization or cancellation of smaller, non-core projects. Funcom’s pivot to Dune: Awakening exemplifies this strategy.
3. Increased Development Costs: The rising cost and extended timelines associated with developing AAA and even AA titles place immense financial pressure on studios.

The loss of a studio like The Outsiders is a significant blow to creative diversity in the industry. It raises critical questions about how talent and creative risk are valued against quarterly profit margins and corporate restructuring goals, particularly when a studio has proven its ability to deliver a commercially successful and critically acclaimed original IP.

For the dozens of employees now affected by this closure, the focus shifts to leveraging their exceptional experience in high-quality rhythm-shooter development, unique art direction, and world-class sound design into new opportunities. The collective hope remains that the talent behind Metal: Hellsinger will indeed find a “new form” to continue creating exceptional gaming experiences in the future.