Last Sentinel's direction changes as Lightspeed LA lays off about 80 employees

About 80 employees are leaving Lightspeed LA as the studio revises Last Sentinel's creative concept and production plan. Bloomberg also reported that the Tencent-backed project may have been rebooted — and possibly canceled — after six years of development and hundreds of millions of dollars spent.

According to the studio, the changes follow internal reviews and closed playtests. Lightspeed LA said the goal is to make the final product meet player expectations, while the game still has no approved release window.

The project was first introduced on December 8, 2023 as an open-world action game set in a near-future Tokyo. At the time, Tencent appeared to be aiming for a major competitor to Grand Theft Auto, and the game was also compared to Cyberpunk 2077.

Bloomberg's Jason Schreier said the situation worsened after closed playtests in early 2026 drew negative reactions and Tencent executives were unhappy with the game's progress. He wrote:

Lightspeed LA said it will support affected staff and, where possible, offer them roles in other divisions. The official reveal trailer also showed that players control Hiromi Shoda, and in 2024 the studio said Troy Baker was overseeing the voice acting process.

Now the biggest question is whether Last Sentinel is being reshaped into a stronger game — or quietly moved toward cancellation after all that spending.

Is this a necessary reset for Last Sentinel, or does it sound like a cancellation in all but name?