Industry closures and downsizing thread.

[dyne]

To the surprise of nobody.

https://www.purexbox.com/news/2025/0...-at-the-studio

It probably won't come as much of a surprise to hear that MindsEye, which is one of the most controversial Xbox games of 2025 so far, is apparently leading to mass layoffs at the new development studio Build a Rocket Boy.

A report from IGN mentions that over 100 employees are potentially affected according to "studio sources", which represents 1/5 (or more) of the entire workforce which stands at somewhere around 500 employees.

[NARMAK]

Originally Posted by dyne

To the surprise of nobody.

https://www.purexbox.com/news/2025/0...-at-the-studio

I genuinely do wonder how it would look if you dug into when the company formed, when they basically gestated the idea for Minds Eye to release and probably find it was a mess from the get go. That said, i don't think the executives care about the people, just the money they'll be set to lose.

[Nunab18]

https://www.videogameschronicle.com/...offs-hit-rare/

Rare’s long-in-development original IP, Everwild, has been cancelled, sources have told VGC.

According to people with knowledge of the project, team members were informed of the news, which comes amid significant layoffs across Microsoft and Xbox, which were formally announced on Wednesday.

Employees are likely to lose their jobs as part of broader restructuring of Seas of Thieves developer Rare, the sources said.

https://www.windowscentral.com/gamin...the-initiative

Microsoft is closing down The Initiative, after 7 years. The partnership with Crystal Dynamics will end, and "Perfect Dark" will be cancelled.

https://apnews.com/article/microsoft...e24edebe9fcc6b

Microsoft is laying off thousands of workers, its second mass layoff in months and its largest in more than two years.

The tech giant began sending out layoff notices Wednesday that hit the company’s Xbox video game business and other divisions.

The company declined to say how many people would be laid off but said that it will comprise less than 4% of the workforce it had a year ago.

Microsoft said the cuts will affect multiple teams around the world, including its sales division.

“We continue to implement organizational changes necessary to best position the company and teams for success in a dynamic marketplace,” it said in a statement.

Xbox CEO Phil Spencer also sent a memo to employees Wednesday that said the cuts would position the video game business “for enduring success and allow us to focus on strategic growth areas.”

It would also “follow Microsoft’s lead in removing layers of management to increase agility and effectiveness,” Spencer wrote.

Microsoft employed 228,000 full-time workers as of last June, the last time it reported its annual headcount. The company said Wednesday that its latest layoffs would cut close to 4% of that workforce, which would be about 9,000 people. But it has already had at least three layoffs this year and it’s unlikely that new hiring has matched the amount lost.

[R3P0]

Originally Posted by Nunab18

https://www.videogameschronicle.com/...offs-hit-rare/



https://www.windowscentral.com/gamin...the-initiative



https://apnews.com/article/microsoft...e24edebe9fcc6b

Also affects Perfect Dark Remake that has now been cancelled as well with the closure of Initiative