Remedy Entertainment, the acclaimed Finnish studio behind hit titles like Alan Wake 2 and Control, has announced a major leadership shakeup. Tero Virtala, who has served as the company's CEO since 2016, has stepped down from his position, effective immediately. The company’s Board of Directors and Virtala mutually agreed upon the decision. To ensure a smooth transition, Remedy co-founder Markus Mäki has been appointed as the interim CEO while the board begins an immediate search for a permanent successor.
Virtala’s departure follows a difficult period for the developer, which has been grappling with the commercial underperformance of its recent multiplayer title, FBC: Firebreak. The Control spin-off, which represented a significant strategic push into the live-service market for the studio, failed to meet sales expectations. This led to Remedy issuing a profit warning to investors just weeks before the leadership change, signaling that the game's weak performance would significantly impact the company's financial outlook for the year.
During his nine-year tenure, Tero Virtala oversaw a period of significant creative and critical success for Remedy. He led the studio through the launch of the critically lauded Control in 2019, which established a new flagship franchise for the company. More recently, he stewarded the long-awaited and highly celebrated release of Alan Wake 2 in 2023, a title that won numerous awards and was praised by critics and fans alike, eventually becoming profitable for the studio.
The new interim CEO, Markus Mäki, is no stranger to the company, being one of its original co-founders in 1995. Prior to taking on this temporary role, Mäki served as the Chairman of the Board. In a statement, Mäki thanked Virtala for his substantial contributions to Remedy's management and growth since 2016. Virtala will remain with the company for a transitional period to support the handover of CEO duties.
This leadership change signals a pivotal moment for Remedy. While the studio's foray into the multiplayer, live-service genre with FBC: Firebreak has proven to be a costly misstep, the company's future projects appear to be a strategic return to its roots. Remedy is currently in full production on highly anticipated single-player, narrative-driven titles, that include Control 2 and the remakes of Max Payne 1 & 2.
