Prior to releasing Star Wars Zero Company last week, developers Bit Reactor reportedly furloughed “most” of the team who made it, seemingly leaving said staff in limbo.

That’s according to a Game File report, which cites one source as having said 80% of the game’s dev team were impacted by the furloughs, which came mere weeks prior to Zero Company’s launch. The furloughed staff remain employees of Bit Reactor, but currently aren’t being paid salaries.

The report alleges that Bit Reactor ran low on money just ahead of releasing Zero Company, leading to these furloughs while a small number of devs stayed on payroll in order to address any post-launch bugs. A Bit Reactor spokesperson told Game File that the decision to furlough the staff was solely Bit Reactor’s, not an edict from Zero Company publishers EA, and that the studio hope to bring the staff back onto payroll at some point. Zero Company’s launch being a success was suggested by the spokesperson to be a factor that could impact whether the latter actually ends up happening.

Zachariah Scott, a former technical artist who claims to have been fired by Bit Reactor in acrimonious circumstances in May this year, has accused the company of “concealing” the furloughs in a LinkedIn post. He subsequently told Game File that furloughed staff he’d spoken to weren’t confident that if Bit Reactor are able to bring some staff back on board, everyone will be able to return to their pre-furlough jobs.

News of the furloughs has emerged due to ongoing legal action between Bit Reactor co-founders Greg Foertsch and Alison Kelly, with the latter having filed a lawsuit against the former which mainly revolves around who owns the studio. It’s set to go to trial in early 2027, with both sides currently occupying themselves by filing and denying various claims against each other.

Solidarity to the furloughed devs, here’s hoping they’re all being paid again soon, regardless off whether it’s by Bit Reactor or another studio if they don’t end up being brought back by the Zero Company makers.