A major layoff took place at the Microsoft Xbox Division, which has resulted in the cancellation of some major projects. The much-awaited reboot of Perfect Dark and Everwild was affected by the layoff, which resulted in their cancellation.
Reports emerged regarding the layoff as it hit multiple studios that are working under the Microsoft Xbox division. The studio affected was Initiative, which was responsible for the development of Perfect Dark. That game has been canceled, and the studio has been shut down.
Rare was another studio that was affected by the layoffs. It was working on a game called Everwild, which was announced in 2019, but now, it has been cancelled. Rare is known for its games, such as Sea of Thieves. Everwild was one of their most anticipated project.
Microsoft’s other studios, like King, known for Candy Crush, also experienced layoffs. The teams behind Forza Motorsport, Halo, Call of Duty, and ZeniMax Online Studios were also impacted by the layoffs. Reportedly, ZeniMax has also canceled an unannounced online game.
The head of Xbox Game Studios, Matt Booty, has confirmed that the restructuring was part of the effort to “broaden the effort to adjust priorities” and “focus resources” in a constantly changing industry.
Microsoft hiked the prices of Xbox Game Pass and its games after the purchase of Activision Blizzard, and these layoffs are a follow-up to that. The news shows a major shuffle of strategy happening in Microsoft’s gaming division. There is no solid information regarding the number of layoffs, but it is in the hundreds, if not thousands.
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