Remedy CEO Tero Virtala is stepping down from his role at the company after nearly a decade at the helm.

The announcement comes just a week after issuing a “profit warning” on its official blog, where it revealed that its venture into the live-service market, FBC: Firebreak, had failed to meet its targets and was going to cost the company around €14.9 million. As such, the company had to alter its forecast for the year, going from an expected profit to an expected loss.

Remedy Co-founder Markus Mäki is going to take on the role of interim CEO, effective today, while Tero Virtala will work on a “transition period” as the company seeks a new leader.

Of course, at no point did the company point to the FBC: Firebreak flop as the reason for Virtala’s decision to leave, but it’s difficult to see some sort of correlation between the two. Remedy’s decision to enter the live-service market despite its specialisation as a cinematic, singleplayer-driven developer immediately drew criticism, and the game was dead-on-arrival.

Remedy, of course, is a company that has always struggled to bring in money. It has created multiple amazing games that have found critical success and loyal fanbases, but that doesn’t always translate to sales. It took nearly a year and a half for Alan Wake 2 to finally recoup its development and marketing costs.

In other words, it’s a company that can’t really afford a €14.9 million loss. It was even more devastating when you consider that FBC: Firebreak was the company’s first self-published game.

But things are hopeful for the future. Control 2 is the sequel to the company’s most successful game in terms of copies sold, although there’s currently no release date in sight. They also have Max Payne remakes in the pipeline, which have the potential to sell well.

I adore Remedy’s style and games, but the company is in a very fragile position right now.