Microsoft laid off round 4 p.c of its workforce — over 9,000 staff — final week, with the corporate’s gaming division particularly hit arduous. The Xbox guardian slashed jobs at a number of first-party studios and cancelled a number of initiatives, together with the Excellent Darkish reboot. Extra particulars in regards to the newest spherical of cuts at Xbox have emerged, detailing the affect on Forza Motorsport developer Flip 10 Studios and Eire-based Romero Video games. The Forza Motorsport group is reportedly laid off, whereas Romero Video games is totally closed, former staffers on the studios have claimed.
Forza Motorsport Workforce ‘No Extra’
Turn 10 Studios, which has helmed the Forza Motorsport sequence, was reportedly affected by the newest spherical of cuts, alongside a number of different studios final week. Following the layoffs, Fred Russell, a former Flip 10 staffer, claimed the studio had misplaced all the Forza Motorsport group.
“Flip 10 Studios has shuttered the Forza Motorsport area and the group is not any extra,” Russell mentioned in a Facebook post on Friday. “A really unhappy day for the most effective automobile racing video video games. I beloved my time there.”
Replying within the feedback part of the put up, Russell mentioned that the Forza Horizon sequence, the arcade racing counterpart to Forza Motorsport that is helmed by British developer Playground Games, would proceed. “Horizon goes to proceed… for now,” Russell mentioned.
Russell mentioned that Flip 10 was open to help improvement on the Forza Horizon sequence and solely the Forza Motorsport aspect had been shuttered. His put up means that Microsoft is not going to produce extra Forza Motorsport titles, bringing the way forward for the enduring racing sim franchise into query. “The legacy will keep, even when there isn’t any future for the sport,” Russell mentioned.
Romero Video games Closed
Along with Flip 10 Studios, Eire-based Romero Video games, based by business legends John and Brenda Romero, is reportedly closed following the layoffs. Romero Video games confirmed final week that it had misplaced funding for its initiatives and was evaluating its subsequent steps.
An unnamed Romero Video games worker instructed The Journal that everybody on the studio — over 100 employees members — had misplaced their jobs.
“We had conferences with the writer the day earlier than this occurred, there was no point out of it,” The Journal quoted the staffer as saying in a report printed Friday.
“We’re looking for different methods of funding the venture,” the worker mentioned. “However for now, it is fully closed, and the studio is closed,” they added.
Romero Video games was engaged on a first-person shooter and a number of other different unannounced initiatives, with Microsoft reportedly serving as a writer. Following the newest spherical of layoffs, the corporate reportedly pulled funding for Romero Video games’ initiatives.
Xbox didn’t verify the complete breadth of affect on its studios and initiatives final week, however mentioned it will “finish or lower work” in sure areas of its enterprise. In an electronic mail to Xbox employees final week, Xbox Recreation Studios head Matt Booty confirmed the Excellent Darkish reboot and Uncommon’s Everwild have been cancelled, together with different unannounced initiatives. He additionally confirmed that Excellent Darkish developer The Initiative can be closed.
Bloomberg, nonetheless, reported that the layoffs had impacted a number of Xbox-owned studios, together with Sweet Crush developer King, Name of Responsibility makers Raven Software program and Sledgehammer Video games, Halo developer Halo Studios, and Flip 10 Studios.
Flip 10 has helmed the Forza Motorsport sequence because it started in 2005 on the unique Xbox. The studio launched Forza Motorsport, the eighth recreation in sequence, in 2023.