In a press release, CEO Adolf Kristjansson said, “This was a difficult but necessary decision. Our strategy is clear: Payday is one of the most iconic IPs in gaming, with unmatched reach and potential. By focusing our investment and talent here, we can accelerate delivery, engage players with more content, and reinforce Starbreeze’s position as the clear leader in the heisting genre. This is about sharpening our focus to create the strongest long-term value for our players, our people, and our shareholders.”

Alongside a non-cash impairment of SEK 255 million (roughly $27.2 million), Starbreeze is redeploying Project Baxter team members to other projects, “most prominently within Payday.” However, it also confirmed layoffs for about 44 contractors and employees to GameDeveloper, though since the following weeks will see union negotiations, the “exact number” couldn’t be specified.

In development on Unreal Engine 5, Project Baxter hadn’t received a gameplay reveal or official title. It would have been another games-as-a-service title, and then-CEO Tobias Sjogren said it was “hard to imagine a better pairing than Dungeons and Dragons and Starbreeze.”

As for what this means for Payday 3, which has floundered since its launch in September 2023, despite multiple updates and improvements. Starbreeze also faced fresh controversy with its new DLC subscription model and price hike on the Infamous Collection for Payday 2. Stay tuned for updates, as always.

Developed and published by Starbreeze, Project Baxter is developed in Unreal Engine 5 and will feature cooperative multiplayer and games-as-a-service elements. No other details are known, but CEO Tobias Sjogren said in a press release that it’s “hard to imagine a better pairing than Dungeons and Dragons and Starbreeze – both with their foundation in cooperative and community-driven experiences, ‘play it your way’ and infinite replayability.

“When looking at prospective IPs for our future projects, Dungeons and Dragons was always at the top of our list, and I’m incredibly happy to announce this license. I want to thank Wizards of the Coast for being such a great partner. Development of the game is in full swing, and we are excited to deliver an amazing Dungeons and Dragons action adventure in 2026,” he added.

Eugene Evans, senior VP of digital strategy and licensing at Wizards of the Coast and Hasbro said, “Dungeons and Dragons is having an extraordinary year. Our gaming brands, including Dungeons and Dragons, continue to attract great partners as we execute our plan to grow our digital games portfolio through licensing and development. Our collaboration with Starbreeze is a prime illustration of this strategy. Given their impressive games and passion for Dungeons and Dragons, we are confident they will create an experience that will delight fans worldwide.”

This announcement is interesting when considering Starbreeze’s other projects, notably Payday 3. The co-op heist shooter launched in September to a mixed response and recently received new features and Legacy Heists. It’s also prepping for its first major story DLC Syntax Error. Whether Project Baxter will also fall under the team’s purview remains to be seen. Stay tuned for more details and updates in the meantime.