More layoffs, great, though this time it’s actually full studio closures. God I hate reporting on such bad news.
Microsoft recently announced that they were doing ‘restructuring’ within their studios to help focus their efforts on more ‘high-impact’ titles. Presumably they want to try and recoup their big spends on Bethesda and Activision/Blizzard by getting them to make big, new games. As such, some beloved studios under Microsoft are now gone, such as frequently excellent studio Arkane Austin, Hi-Fi Rush Developers Tango Gameworks, Alpha Dog Games and finally Roundhouse Games. All these studios will be absorbed by bigger companies working under Microsoft and it feels very depressing to see suchg excellent talent being split up and pushed elsewhere, even perhaps to projects they aren’t comfortable with.
It’s clearly all in the name of profit margins and manby indie devs have expressed their frustration at the changes, especially that of Tango Gameworks as their most recent game, Hi-Fi Rush was a breakout success that apparently means nothing in the grand scheme of the AAA industry. I hope those affected don’t have their lives disrupted too much and I wish them all the best… god I hate this industry sometimes.
That’s all for now, and as always. It’s not just a game, It’s a Life.