October 31, 2025 – Amazon has initiated a massive round of layoffs this week, affecting 14,000 employees. Amid this significant workforce reduction, a high-ranking executive revealed that the company is putting a “significant number” of MMORPG (Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Game) development projects on hold.
According to a report by The Verge today, this strategic shift might lead to the cancellation of Amazon’s “The Lord of the Rings” game, which is being developed in collaboration with Embracer.
A former senior gameplay engineer at Amazon Games posted on LinkedIn, stating, “This morning, I, along with my talented colleagues from the New World team and the team working on the upcoming ‘The Lord of the Rings’ game, were laid off. You would have loved this game!” However, this post has since been removed.
Both Amazon and Embracer have not yet responded to requests for comment. As of now, “The Lord of the Rings” game is still listed on Amazon Games’ official website.
Following the announcement of the layoffs, the development team behind Amazon’s self-developed MMO, “New World: Aeternum,” declared that they would cease releasing new content updates. Nevertheless, the game’s servers will continue to operate until 2026. Amazon spokesperson Brittney Hefner informed The Verge this week that the company will maintain support for two of its currently released MMOs: “Throne and Liberty” and “Lost Ark.”
It is worth noting that the “The Lord of the Rings” game developed in partnership with Embracer and announced in 2023 represents Amazon’s second attempt at creating an MMO set in the “The Lord of the Rings” universe. The first attempt was announced as early as 2019 but was canceled two years later.
