The bloodletting at Microsoft affects some well-known names.
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The gaming landscape has suddenly become poorer by four studios. Microsoft has decided to close Tango Gameworks (The Evil Within, Hi-Fi Rush), Arkane Austin (Redfall), Alpha Dog Games (Mighty Doom) and Roundhouse Studios.
This means that the wave of studio closures and layoffs that has been going on for months continues. This step also has some effects on games that have already been released.
There is already an initial reaction from the affected studio Tango Gameworks:
Link to Twitter content
Reprioritization of titles and resources
Matt Booty, head of Xbox Game Studios, addressed the staff in an email. The email is there IGN before, we have translated it into German for you below.
It says, among other things, that the group Focus on influential titles place and in the Building new brands want to invest. The closure of the studios and the associated job cuts are the result of one Reprioritization of titles and resources
. Microsoft does not communicate how many people will lose their jobs in total.
Since Matt Booty's email is very long, we have put it in a box for you that you can expand if you wish:
The internal email at Microsoft in its entirety
Today I want to share with you what changes we're making across our Bethesda and ZeniMax teams. These changes come as we continue to focus on influential titles and continue to invest in Bethesda's portfolio of blockbuster games and beloved game worlds that they have nurtured over many decades.
To strengthen these franchises and invest in building new brands, we must review the entire company to identify the opportunities that are best positioned for success. This reprioritization of titles and resources means that some teams will be reallocated to others and that some of our colleagues will leave us.
Here are the changes that will take effect:
Arkane Austin – This studio is closing, with some members of the team moving to other studios to work on projects within Bethesda. Arkane Austin has a history of creating impressive and innovative games – a history that everyone should be proud of. Redfall's latest update will be our last as we finish development on the game. The game and its servers will remain online for players and we will make a compensation offer to players who purchased the Hero DLC.
Alpha Dog Studios – This studio will also be closed. We appreciate the team's creativity in making Doom accessible to new players. Mighty Doom will be discontinued on August 7th and we will be removing the ability for players to make in-game purchases.
Tango Gameworks – Tango Gameworks is also closing. We are grateful for their contributions to Bethesda and gamers around the world. Hi-Fi Rush will continue to be available to players on current platforms.
Roundhouse Games – The Roundhouse Games team will join ZeniMax Online Studios (ZOS). Roundhouse has played a key role in many of our recent game launches, and bringing them to ZOS to work on The Elder Scrolls Online means we can do even more to expand the world that millions of players call home to name.
With this consolidation of our Bethesda studio teams, allowing us to invest more heavily in our games portfolio and new IPs, a small number of positions across select Bethesda publishing and corporate teams will also be eliminated.
Those whose positions will be impacted will be notified today, and we ask that you treat your departing colleagues with respect and compassion. We will provide our full support to those affected by today's notifications, including severance payments in accordance with local law.
These changes have nothing to do with the creativity and skills of the talented people on these teams or the risks they have taken to try new things. I recognize that these changes are also impactful for the various support teams at ZeniMax and Bethesda that bring our games to market. We are making these difficult decisions to create capacity for increased investment in other parts of our portfolio and to focus on our priority games.
Bethesda remains a key pillar of Xbox with a strong portfolio of great games and thriving communities. As we look to the future, we have an impressive slate of games on the horizon. Starfield Shattered Space, Fallout 76 Skyline Valley, Indiana Jones and the Great Circle and The Elder Scrolls Online Golden Road will be released in 2024 alone. Our teams at Arkane Lyon, Bethesda Game Studios, id Software, MachineGames, ZeniMax Online Studios, and the Bethesda publishing and corporate teams are well-positioned to develop new IPs, explore new game concepts, and expand our existing franchises as we expand our Align plans and resources to succeed in this complex and changing industry.
– Matt
1:31:39
Why is the gaming industry burning?
Refunds at Redfall
Two games are named in the internal memo that are specifically affected by the measures:
- Redfall: Buyers of the Bite Back Edition, which costs 110 euros, are still waiting for two heroes that should appear as DLCs after the launch. Since that will never happen, Arkane announced that it would issue a refund equal to the Bite Back upgrade. If you are affected by this, you can find the link to the form in this tweet:
Link to Twitter content
- The Elder Scrolls Online: The successful online role-playing game will have an increase in personnel in the future. Large parts of the workforce at the closed Roundhouse Studios will continue to be employed at Zenimax Online.
Not affected by the measures are Arkane Lyon, who are currently working on a new Blade game. MachineGames (Indiana Jones and the Great Circle) and id Software (Doom Eternal) also get away unscathed.
There is a hail of criticism from players and the entire industry
There is a lot of criticism of Microsoft online. Among other things, because of one that has aged poorly Tweets from Xbox marketing chief Aaron Greenberg. He wrote in April 2023, that Hi-Fi Rush was a surprise hit and exceeded expectations.
You could not happier
with the performance of the Tango Gameworks team. A year later, the internet is now zeroing in on this statement at the time:
Link to Twitter content
Link to Twitter content
Other statements from the not too distant past also have a stale aftertaste for many social media users in light of recent events.
Xbox boss Phil Spencer strengthened the Arkane Austin team last year nor the back and Matt Booty also emphasized in June 2023, that the studio will not be closed.
There are even critical voices within Microsoft. Because Dinga Bakaba, the creative director at Arkane Lyon (Dishonored, Deathloop), has one Series of tweets in which he doesn't shy away from criticizing his superiors for their actions between the lines:
This is absolutely terrible. […] To any executives reading this, a friendly reminder that video games are an entertainment/cultural industry, and it is your job as a company to take care of your artists/entertainers and help them add value.
Don't make us pawns in the gold rush, don't use us as front men for miscalculations […]. You say we'll make you proud when we play a good game. Then please make us proud when times are tough. We know you can do it, we've seen it before.
At the moment, big teams are once again going under in front of our eyes and it's a damn slap in the face. […]
PLUS
24:17
DevPlay: Will 2024 be a disaster year for game developers?
There is also criticism from other parts of the games industry. Among others, Alanah Pearce, who works as a writer at Sony's Santa Monica Studio. She describes the closure of the studios as incredibly sad
and asks himself resignedly: What the hell are we doing here?!
Link to Twitter content
Maisie Ó Dorchaidhe left triple-A game development some time ago and is devoting herself to her own projects as an indie developer. Why becomes clear when you look at it her reaction on the studio closures reads:
Things that will no longer protect you in this industry:
- a good game
- a profitable game
- a viral game
- a big publisher
- a small publisher
- a big team
- a small team
- a rich parent company
- one
ethical
parent company - Experience
- long working hours and sacrifice
Forbes editor Paul Tassi, who is in… his tweet asks, like anyone [in der Branche] should still feel safe
.
So 2024 is going the same way 2023 ended: with a lot of bad news from the games industry. Executives had predicted this trajectory at the start of the year, and it remains to be seen what happens next.
The head of Embracer Groip has now made self-critical comments about the massive job cuts in his company. We also spoke directly to those affected by the wave of layoffs. You can find both reports on GameStar Plus, we have linked them above.