Microsoft has stopped improvement on Contraband, a multiplayer co-op title that was within the works at Simply Trigger developer Avalanche Studios. The sport, which was set to be printed by Xbox Sport Studios, was introduced in 2021, however the developer had not shared any updates because the reveal. Whereas Contraband follows a spate of sport cancellations at Microsoft, the corporate has reportedly not axed Hideo Kojima’s horror title OD, at present in improvement in collaboration with Xbox.
Microsoft Cancels Contraband
Contraband’s cancellation was first reported by Bloomberg’s Jason Schreier on Thursday earlier than being confirmed by Avalanche. In an update on its website, the Swedish studio mentioned it could assess the sport’s future.
“Over the previous a number of years, Avalanche Studios Group and Xbox Game Studios Publishing have collaborated on Contraband,” the developer mentioned. “Lively improvement has now stopped whereas we consider the challenge’s future. We’re grateful for the joy we have seen from the neighborhood since we introduced and can give an replace on what’s subsequent as quickly as we are able to.”
Whereas the assertion suggests the sport might but have a future, Schreier, in a post on Bluesky, claimed the challenge was cancelled. Contraband was introduced with a quick cinematic trailer at Xbox and Bethesda’s E3 showcase in 2021. The sport was described as a “co-op smuggler’s paradise set within the fictional world of Seventies Bayan. Contraband was set to be an Xbox Collection S/X console unique, with confirmed launch on Xbox Sport Go, Steam, and Home windows.
Hideo Kojima’s OD Nonetheless in Improvement
Amid a number of cancellations at Xbox, followers have speculated in regards to the destiny of OD, the horror sport in improvement at Kojima Productions with Xbox Sport Studios because the publishing associate. A Microsoft spokesperson, nonetheless, informed Schreier that OD was nonetheless in improvement. No additional particulars in regards to the challenge can be found.
The most recent cancellation at Xbox comes a month after widespread cuts at Microsoft that noticed practically 4 % of its complete workforce — over 9,000 workers — laid off. The retrenchment drive led to a number of challenge cancellations on the Xbox division, together with the Good Darkish reboot, Uncommon’s Everwild, and an unannounced MMO from The Elder Scrolls On-line developer ZeniMax On-line Studios.
A number of different studios at Xbox, together with Sweet Crush developer King, Name of Obligation makers Raven Software program and Sledgehammer Video games, Halo Studios, and Forza Motorsport developer Turn10 Studios, have been hit with layoffs, as nicely. The entire Forza Motorsport team was reportedly laid off.
The cuts got here regardless of sturdy quarterly outcomes from Microsoft, which just lately hit $4 trillion (roughly Rs. 3,49,15,020 crore) in market valuation — solely the second firm in historical past to take action. At its fourth-quarter FY 2025 earnings name final week, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella introduced that Xbox Game Pass annual revenue hit practically $5 billion for the primary time over the previous 12 months. The tech big’s Gaming income grew 10 %, whereas Xbox content material and companies income rose 13 % in FY 2025.