On May 7, it was revealed that Microsoft is shutting down four gaming studios, including Tango Gameworks and Arkane Austin. Journalist Jason Schreier and The Verge published extensive notes detailing what happened at Microsoft prior to the teams' dissolution.
Jason Schreier:
- Many employees were shocked by the unexpected news. Tango Gameworks was planning to release a sequel to Hi-Fi Rush, while Arkane wanted to return to its roots and create Dishonored 3;
- According to Xbox President Matt Booty, the studios would have had to hire many new employees to develop new games — this was the main reason for the closures. Microsoft decided to shut down the teams to free up resources elsewhere;
- ZeniMax head Jill Braff hopes that the reorganization will allow more people to work on fewer projects: «It's hard to support nine studios all across the world with a lean central team with an ever-growing plate of things to do»;
- Booty noted that the closure of Arkane Austin is not related to Redfall;
- Following the purchase of Activision Blizzard, Microsoft's leadership began to closely monitor Xbox's successes;
- According to analyst Mat Piscatella, the Game Pass service is experiencing stagnation: since mid-2021, monthly spending on the gaming subscription in the US has not grown.
The Verge:
- Prior to the closure, Arkane Austin was working on a major patch and DLC for Redfall. The update was supposed to add an offline mode;
- Most likely, Microsoft will continue to release its games on competing platforms;
- Xbox employees are worried that the company will continue with layoffs;
- A day after the studios were closed, Matt Booty stated at a general meeting that the company «needs small games that provide prestige and awards.» Many were surprised by these words, as Microsoft had laid off the creators of Hi-Fi Rush shortly before.
We also previously wrote that Senua's Saga: Hellblade 2 might be the next Xbox game to be released on PS5.