PUBLISH 10.30: Epic Games' Private-Market Shares Drop 21% As Fortnite Maker Faces Growth Challenges

Epic Games’ private-market share price has fallen 21.4% over the past year, as the Fortnite maker faces slowing player engagement, major layoffs and delays to a highly anticipated video game collaboration with Walt Disney Co. (NYSE:DIS).

Epic’s Forge Price stood at $262.21 per share on Oct. 29, down $71.41 over the period, according to Forge Global data. The platform listed the company’s Forge Price valuation at $9.83 billion.

The decline comes as Epic tries to reinvigorate Fortnite while pursuing new growth opportunities through its Disney partnership and artificial intelligence initiatives.

Disney Game Faces Delays

Epic’s plans to expand beyond Fortnite have encountered challenges. In October, the company paused development of an upcoming game tied to Disney and directed developers to use AI tools to help complete the project.

The game, initially expected to debut in March 2027, has no new release date. The delay followed concerns about development timelines, staffing requirements and the amount of work needed to complete the title.

The project was expected to be a key part of the companies’ broader partnership, which began with Disney’s $1.5 billion equity investment in Epic in 2024.

“We’re embracing AI-accelerated development, led by Epic developers who are the visionaries and creative drivers for everything we do,” Jake Jones, Epic’s communications director, told Bloomberg.

Fortnite Engagement Pressures Spending

Epic’s challenges extend to its flagship franchise. In March, CEO Tim Sweeney told employees that a downturn in Fortnite engagement that began in 2025 meant the company was “spending significantly more than we’re making.”

The company announced plans to eliminate more than 1,000 jobs and identified more than $500 million in savings through cuts to contracting, marketing and open positions.

The layoffs followed another major round of job cuts in 2023, when Epic eliminated roughly 830 positions.

Although Fortnite remains one of the industry’s most-played games, weaker average playtime presents a challenge for a live-service business that relies on regular player engagement to generate recurring revenue.

Epic is also betting on Unreal Engine, its widely used game-development technology, to support growth beyond its flagship title. The company’s ability to balance investment in new projects with cost discipline could be critical as it seeks to rebuild momentum.

Private-Market Pricing Falls Below Previous Benchmarks

Epic’s current Forge Price is also well below the share price associated with its previous funding round.

In February 2024, Disney announced its $1.5 billion investment in Epic as part of the companies’ broader partnership. Forge lists that financing at a $22.5 billion post-money valuation and a $600 share price.

Epic’s current $262.21 Forge Price is approximately 56% below that historical share-price benchmark. However, private funding-round valuations and secondary-market pricing can differ, and the comparison does not represent a new official company valuation.

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