Summary
- Microsoft has reportedly conducted further layoffs impacting its gaming, security, and sales divisions.
- The precise number of employees affected remains undisclosed.
- These job cuts are separate from earlier layoffs announced in January.
Microsoft has reportedly implemented another round of layoffs across its gaming, security, and sales divisions. The past few years have been challenging for the video game industry, with numerous companies, including Microsoft, announcing significant job reductions in 2024 alone. This has impacted both large studios and smaller indie developers, with recent examples including IllFonic (Predator: Hunting Grounds) and People Can Fly (Outriders). Earlier this month, Rocksteady also announced layoffs following the mixed reception of Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League.
Microsoft itself has experienced substantial workforce reductions since the beginning of 2024. In January, the company announced the elimination of 1,900 positions within its Xbox gaming division, affecting both Microsoft employees and those at acquired studios like Activision Blizzard and ZeniMax. Further cuts in September impacted 650 corporate and support staff at Activision Blizzard.
A new report from Business Insider (via GamesIndustry.biz) suggests another round of layoffs at Microsoft. While a spokesperson confirmed the cuts, the exact number of employees affected remains unspecified. These layoffs are distinct from earlier cuts focused on underperforming employees unrelated to Xbox.
Microsoft's Ongoing Layoffs and Their Implications
Microsoft's continued layoffs are particularly noteworthy given its recent acquisitions of major publishers like Bethesda and Activision Blizzard, and its achievement of a $3 trillion market valuation shortly after the January 2024 layoffs. The initial wave of cuts prompted complaints from the FTC, which attempted to use the Activision Blizzard layoffs to oppose or reverse Microsoft's merger with the Call of Duty publisher.
Previous Microsoft layoffs impacted Xbox's physical retail teams, most of Blizzard's customer service team, and internal development studios such as Sledgehammer Games and Toys for Bob. Blizzard's unannounced survival game, codenamed Project Odyssey, was also canceled following these job cuts. The scale of the latest round of layoffs remains unconfirmed, and its impact on the Xbox gaming division is currently unknown.
