It’s a tumultuous time for the Xbox brand right now. After a series of sweeping changes, CEO Asha Sharma vowed to right the ship, but didn’t elaborate on what that might entail. Now we’re starting to see the scope of what it means for Xbox to reshape itself.
Many teams are bracing for possible layoffs, in what some are calling one of the biggest potential layoff sessions in the history of the game industry.
There’s another studio that could also be hit with unexpected layoffs: Arkane Studios. Given that Arkane is developing the next Blade video game, it seemed like they were safe, but according to a report from The Verge, Microsoft is allegedly considering dropping the project altogether.
According to the report, Xbox will officially announce layoffs next week, and Arkane could be caught in the crossfire. Allegedly, Marvel’s Blade could be canceled as Microsoft closes or attempts to sell off Arkane, since Blade hasgone over budget and has weathered a series of unannounced delays.
Compulsion Games, Double Fine, Ninja Theory, and Undead Labs (the studio behind State of Decay) are all having their options weighed right now, bringing the potential studio count to five, including Arkane. As the report notes: “Beyond the potential studio closures, Microsoft is preparing for a wave of layoffs at Xbox that will drastically reshape its gaming division. These layoffs are due to start on July 6th, according to sources, and will hit most parts of Xbox. Rumors have suggested there could be at least 1,000 job losses, and if Microsoft goes ahead with five studio closures, then that’s at least 500 employees impacted before the wider cuts.”
This isn’t the first mishap to befall the Blade IP. After the poor returns from the third part of the film trilogy, Blade mostly went back on ice, popping up here and there in mainstream projects. He had a good showing in Marvel’s Midnight Suns, but that game underperformed financially. The Blade movie is currently in development hell, and so far in the MCU, he’s been reduced to a legacy actor cameo.
As far as the gaming industry goes, while the new Xbox team changes sounded positive at first, the reality has yet to set in. This “reset” of the brand could be even more brutal than some predicted, with a ton of studios excised by Microsoft in favor of sticking to established IP like Halo and Gears of War.
But Microsoft’s buying spree has been so rampant over the past 10 years that it’s tough to tell which studios are even legacy at Xbox at this point. Halo Studios (formerly 343 Industries, which took over for Bungie) is a relatively new rebranding, for example. When this layoff season is over, we could be looking at a completely different Xbox.
- Founded
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November 15, 2001
- Owner
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Microsoft
- Known For
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Halo, Forza, Gears of War