XBOX has eliminated 268 roles and reorganised its first-party studios, with Activision now set to develop the next Halo game.
The changes were outlined in a public memo sent to Team XBOX employees worldwide on September 22nd by XBOX executive Matt Booty. He described the moves as part of the "XBOX reset" the company outlined earlier this year. The job cuts affected Halo Studios, other first-party studios and the management and central functions layer of XBOX Game Studios (XGS), the division that oversees XBOX's in-house developers. According to the memo, the actions completed since July (including the sale of several studios) have taken XBOX roughly three-quarters of the way through its previously announced restructuring.
"I am deeply grateful for what our colleagues have built, and I know how difficult today will be for those leaving and the teams around them," Booty said.
Activision to develop the next Halo game
Booty said the reorganisation is designed to "strengthen our franchises and games" by running fewer business units, bringing together groups that already work closely and focusing XBOX's publishing expertise.
Activision, the publisher behind Call of Duty, will expand to include World's Edge and Rare. It will also develop the next Halo title through a new team built specifically for the project. According to the memo, this team will be separate from ongoing Call of Duty development and plans. A small team will stay at Halo Studios to support the Halo community and the games already on the market.
Bethesda will take on Obsidian, which is continuing work on its current projects. These include Grounded and a new Fallout project being made with Bethesda Game Studios. King will absorb Microsoft Casual Games. Booty said the move unites XBOX's "two global leaders in casual game design and live operations."
Playground and Turn 10 will merge into one studio focused on the Forza and Fable franchises. The two studios have worked together as creative and franchise partners for more than a decade, and the change formally puts their work under a single team.
Ninja Theory faces proposed closure
Booty also gave an update on the studios XBOX has spun off. In August, Compulsion and Double Fine were handed back to their management teams, along with their intellectual property (IP), back catalogues and runway funding.
Undead Labs has since followed on similar terms. The studio now has a new publisher, and State of Decay 3 will launch on day one on Game Pass, XBOX's subscription service.
Ninja Theory has not been as fortunate. Two separate agreements for the studio fell through, and XBOX will now begin consultation with employees on a proposed closure. Booty said the company would continue to explore "other paths forward" while that process takes place. Consultation with Arkane is still underway and is expected to run until the end of the year.
"Today, our focus should be on supporting those affected and treating one another with care and respect," Booty wrote. He added that he will spend time with XBOX's studios over the next week. The company will then hold an all-staff town hall on October 6th, where Booty said employees will "reflect on our progress and look ahead to one of the strongest game lineups in our history."
