Microsoft

Around 200 employees are being laid off at King, the studio behind Candy Crush Saga. The bitter irony, sources say, is that many of those cut are the very developers and designers who spent years creating and training AI tools to automate their own jobs. Now, those tools are ready to take their place.

Microsoft has found itself in yet another controversy—just weeks after a wave of layoffs. Mike Matsel, a senior graphics specialist at Xbox, came under fire after posting a job listing accompanied by a low-quality AI-generated image.

Windows 10 users relying on Microsoft 365 (Word, Excel, etc.) will face a gradual reduction in the suite's capabilities. Following the end of Windows 10 support in October 2025, new features will stop being added to the apps as soon as August 2026, leaving users on a "frozen" version.

Windows 11 users, especially those who’ve battled the dreaded BSOD or struggled with system settings, should keep an eye on two new features currently being tested in the Windows Insider program. The first, Quick Machine Recovery (QMR), automatically attempts to "repair" a PC that won’t start. The second is a built-in AI agent right inside the Settings app — helping you find options or troubleshoot issues using plain English.

Microsoft’s Edge just got faster — not just at startup, but in everyday use. Thanks to its new WebUI 2.0 platform, core parts of the interface now load up to 4x quicker. The difference is especially noticeable on low-end devices: the browser reacts near-instantly, hitting the crucial 300ms response threshold.

Tired of pre-installed Windows 11 apps like Camera, Xbox, or Notepad that you can’t uninstall through Settings? Relief is coming. Microsoft’s upcoming 25H2 update will introduce a built-in tool to easily remove these components—no more complex commands or third-party uninstallers.

According to StatCounter data for the first week of July 2025, a major PC market milestone has been reached: Microsoft's Windows 11 has finally surpassed Windows 10 in terms of install share. After nearly four years of steady growth, the newer OS now powers the majority of Windows-based computers.

Raphael Colantonio, former Arkane Studios head and creator of Dishonored, has spoken out against Microsoft’s Game Pass subscription model, calling it "unsustainable" and even harmful to the video game industry.

The cancelled Perfect Dark was set to feature a character voiced by the actor who played Adam Jensen from Deus Ex: Human Revolution and Mankind Divided. Actor Elias Toufexis revealed that he spent many hours on the project and lost a significant fee.

Bloomberg journalist Jason Schreier has revealed new details about Blackbird, the now-canceled MMORPG from ZeniMax Online Studios, the team behind The Elder Scrolls Online. Despite strong internal support from Xbox leadership, the project was ultimately scrapped.

It seems Microsoft hasn’t just axed Perfect Dark — the Forza Motorsport series may also be on the chopping block. Based on developer comments and LinkedIn updates, Turn 10 Studios has reportedly lost about half of its staff.

Despite Microsoft’s mass layoffs and the cancellation of several high-profile projects, OD, the upcoming horror title from Japanese game designer Hideo Kojima, remains unaffected and is still in active development, according to Windows Central’s Jez Corden.

Following the cancellation of an unannounced MMORPG from ZeniMax Online Studios — best known for The Elder Scrolls Online — new information about the project has surfaced from various sources. According to insiders, the game was progressing well and had received excellent feedback from early testers.

One of the biggest stories of the week is the mass layoffs in Microsoft’s gaming divisions that began yesterday. This move is part of a broader internal restructuring at the company: nearly 9 000 employees will be let go — around 4% of Microsoft’s global workforce. For Xbox studios, this isn’t the first major shake-up this year. However, the consequences of these new layoffs appear even more serious than previous ones: Microsoft hasn’t just let people go — it has also canceled multiple projects, including one of the most anticipated Xbox exclusives. That’s what today’s article is about.

The wave of mass layoffs and game cancellations across Microsoft has now impacted Romero Games, the studio led by legendary developer John Romero, co-creator of the original Doom and Quake. According to an official statement, Bethesda Softworks has pulled its funding from the studio’s in-development first-person shooter.

Microsoft has reportedly shut down The Initiative, the studio tasked with reviving the spy-thriller AAA shooter Perfect Dark. The reboot of Rare's cult classic 2000 game has now been cancelled.

Microsoft has once again begun pushing out the KB5001716 update to Windows 10 and 11 PCs. This update could pave the way for the automatic installation of new OS versions, even if users previously hit "pause." What's more, the installation happens silently in the background, without any heads-up.

he desktop OS market is undergoing a significant shift: Microsoft data reveals a steady exodus of 400 million Windows users over three years. Mobile platforms and alternative systems are taking center stage.

Windows Central journalist and editor Jez Corden has once again commented on the existence of an internal trailer for The Elder Scrolls 6. This time, he confirmed that his sources are aware of a demo being shown within Microsoft.

A global outage triggered by a CrowdStrike update a year ago has pushed Microsoft and top security vendors to rethink Windows’ core security model. Instead of deep kernel integration, antivirus and threat monitoring (EDR) tools will migrate to a new, isolated platform.