If they are replacing some employees with contractors in regard to COD studios, I am a little bit worried. This 18 month contractor thing might be fine with other aspects of techs within Microsoft, but I don’t know if it will work out for things like gaming. Look at Halo Infinite or Forza Motorsport, and despite being good games, they felt incomplete when released. I hope they don’t ruin COD the same way as someone who regularly play the game.
I was just calling out someone making (what I thought) was an inappropriate snide remark. Too spicy for some people I guess.
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Your new user name: Sassy82
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Love it, perhaps they all got studios?
- Toys for Spyro
- Toys for Crash
- Toys for Blinx
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With how MWIII turned out I don’t think it can get much worse
Halo Infinite’s problems were more than just contractors, it was horrible management and using an engine that caused nothing but issues which were exacerbated further because of contractors
Motorsport I’m not sure what went wrong really but I’m not sure if it has anything to do with contractors, does the UK have the same contract policies as the US?
They still have 1000s of fulltime devs working on CoD, until we get more data and examples than just Halo, the whole contractor thing isn’t worth getting worked up about
CoD had like two contractor studios working on CoD.
One of them are a contracted developer currently working on the Halo Infinite UX revamp!
That’s meaningless speculation coming from someone with a jaded gamer angle
I know it sucks for anyone getting laid off, but the talented employees will find even better roles with higher pay at medium size developers, or even launch their own company and game. Also take note of the timing, MS did wait until after the Christmas holidays, and the fiscal quarter end Dec.31st. Employees got paid and extended health. Look at what Sony did with Bungie staff, it was much worse in timing. Sony also cancelling games and even closing studios. Japan Studio, maybe Media Molecule next, plus 2nd party development contracts for exclusives cancelled that effected those studios.
Also MS 2024 'Q2 Earnings call is Jan. 30th. After the largest investment in company history, Xbox has to show that they are executing and active in reaching performance targets with the acquisitions.
Xbox Revenue '24 Q1 - $3.9 B. Activision Revenue for that same Quarter - $2.2 B. So next week at the Q2 Earnings call Xbox will pass 10% of MS total revenue. They are now a pillar and have to show it.
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Not sure we should really be making this a matter of Xbox laying off people “better” than Sony. Both companies cancelled projects and laid people off and it fucking sucks for the staff involved.
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This is from my post yesterday: A lot of the outrage is overblown and there for attention. I don’t understand people that complain on social media about the layoffs, that’s definitely not the right approach. I had two immediate family members laid off this past year in tech, one was actually with Microsoft. They never complained or had a bad thing to say about MS, it was quite the opposite. They understood, the company grew to fast and the economy is under pressure with inflation. They made their contacts and started applying right away. Now have a better paying job, and MS referrals or even ABK referrals are respected. The talented employees will land great jobs out of this.
P.S. And I didn’t add they also had two toddlers and a new mortgage with growing rates. There are people in life that complain on social media, and then those who understand the realities pros/cons of working for a Nasdaq-100 index company.
Corporate cabal-mind is a great way to rationalize 1900 people losing their jobs yeah lmfao
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Interesting.
@SuikerBrood - Can you provide the links to this information?
It’s dealing with reality, finding a solution, and having a positive mindset to overcome obstacles. Have you personally offered support financially or networking to anyone affected by Microsoft layoffs? I have. So again, are you someone that just talks tough online or a person that takes action in real life to help people affected?
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Soooooo…how many devs XGS/MS gaming has under its roof after this? Still 20K?
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I have as well, several times, to friends and colleagues within and without the industry.
Using human empathy as a gotcha to make me look bad is extremely weird. Like if I had answered this any other way would my words immediately be devalued?
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Let’s keep it on-topic folks 
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Good read by Stephen Totilo:
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I find the framing of this tiresome. Like it was some sort of mass tear down, and all of the talent was sent packing, and they won’t be capable of making games anymore.
Even if all 1900 layoffs came from ABK they would still be just north of 15,000 employees. 5000 more than when the acquisition was announced in 2022. They literally added an entire blizzard (Blizzard had 5000 in Jan 2022) + 2000 more in two years.
None of the comments from Phil about how that talent can help them build games are any less true now than they were when he said them.
Addendum: Getting fired is a brutal experience, and I don’t want to diminish that fact, but the way the person above describes getting laid off is how it has worked at every company I have ever worked at. Even now, where I work at a university, you will be called and told you are to cease coming to work just before campus police come in to escort you to your car. You are then told that you will be able to schedule a time to collect the rest of your belongings with a campus police escort. There is never dignity in it.
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