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9h ago

Microsoft Cuts 9,000 Jobs and Scraps Perfect Dark and Everwild

Phil Spencer says the overhaul is designed to sharpen Xbox’s focus on its strongest franchises, emerging markets in an evolving industry.

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Overview

  • Microsoft laid off approximately 9,000 employees, representing about 4% of its global workforce, in a sweeping overhaul of its gaming operations.
  • Xbox Game Studios head Matt Booty confirmed that development on Perfect Dark, Everwild, and an unannounced Zenimax Online MMO has been halted and that The Initiative studio has been closed.
  • Forza Motorsport developer Turn 10 Studios lost nearly half of its staff while King cut about 10% of its workforce and Call of Duty teams at Raven Software and Sledgehammer Games were also impacted.
  • Affected employees will receive severance packages, career transition assistance, and opportunities for redeployment within other Xbox teams where possible.
  • This is the fourth major restructuring of Microsoft’s gaming arm since early 2024, showcasing its pivot toward subscription and cloud gaming after the Activision Blizzard and ZeniMax acquisitions.