All articles tagged with #xbox restructuring
Ninja Theory developers are facing redundancy as the studio moves toward closure following failed sale attempts during Xbox's broader restructuring. Staff have expressed sadness and uncertainty on LinkedIn, while Microsoft retains control of the 'Senua' intellectual property.
Frank O'Connor, former franchise director of Halo, has publicly advised Activision on how to approach the next entry in the series. He suggests three distinct development paths: a classic shooter, a modern reinvention, or a Call of Duty-style service model. He also urges Activision to hire staff laid off from Bungie and Halo Studios, warning against tying the game to hardware launch cycles.
Microsoft’s president of Bethesda and Casual Games, Jill Braff, sent an email to Obsidian Entertainment staff confirming that the studio will retain its distinct creative identity despite being reorganized under the Bethesda umbrella. Braff stated that Obsidian CEO Feargus Urquhart and his leadership team will continue to lead the studio, which now reports directly to her. The move is part of a broader 'franchise-led' model at Xbox, where Obsidian will collaborate with Bethesda Game Studios on a new Fallout project while maintaining its own development pipeline. This announcement follows recent layoffs and restructuring efforts aimed at consolidating resources around major franchises like Fallout and The Elder Scrolls.
Compulsion Games is now listed as the publisher of South of Midnight on Steam, signaling its full detachment from Microsoft's Xbox division during a major restructuring that has seen several studios become independent. The studio retains rights to Contrast, We Happy Few, and South of Midnight and plans to continue as an independent developer; however, broader layoff activity affects up to 1,600 roles by next summer, and some storefronts still show Microsoft/Xbox as publisher on other platforms.
John Carmack comments on Microsoft's extensive layoffs at Xbox Game Studios that hit id Software, admitting his earlier hope that Microsoft would be a good steward of the brand isn’t aging well. He expresses sadness, not anger, questions whether id was a marginal business and whether pricing, marketing, and broader revenue strategies could have changed outcomes, and ends with a hope that the studio can rally through the restructuring.
After Xbox's restructuring, Undead Labs is being sold, and State of Decay 3 may no longer be contractually required to launch on Xbox Game Pass. The new owner could decide whether or not to release the game on Game Pass, making its day-one availability on the service uncertain despite the studio's ongoing operation.