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PayPalWell, this sure is a terrible time for the gaming industry isn't it. Now it's Microsoft turn again to close multiple studios. As first posted by IGN who managed to get a copy of an internal email sent by Matt Booty, head of Xbox Game Studios, the studios themselves have now confirmed it's all true across various posts on X (formerly Twitter).
The studios that have been announced that will be closing are:
- Tango Gameworks who made The Evil Within, The Evil Within 2, Ghostwire: Tokyo, Hero Dice and Hi-Fi Rush.
- Alpha Dog Studios who made multiple mobiles games like Mighty DOOM (which will shut) and Wraithborne.
- Roundhouse Games (reformed from Human Head Studios) but they will be joining up with ZeniMax Online Studios.
- Arkane Austin who made Redfall but "some" of their team will be placed elsewhere in Bethesda. As a result, Redfall will get no more updates now. However, Arkane Lyon are still going and working on games.
Such a shame to see more studios get the chop, especially odd is Tango Gameworks because Hi-Fi Rush was quite a hit overall even though it was completely surprise released. And since according to Microsoft it "was a break out hit for us and our players in all key measurements and expectations".
Statements on X from: Tango Gameworks, Arkane Studios, and Alpha Dog Games.
Remind me again why game industry consolidation is a good thing? Because it never seems like it is. These massive companies buy up various other publishers and developers, force them into box-ticking exercises for every penny they can get and then shut them all down. I'm tired of seeing it.
This news comes only days after GTA 6 publisher Take-Two shuts Roll7 and Intercept Games.
Article taken from GamingOnLinux.com.
About the author - Liam Dawe
I am the owner of GamingOnLinux. After discovering Linux back in the days of Mandrake in 2003, I constantly checked on the progress of Linux until Ubuntu appeared on the scene and it helped me to really love it. You can reach me easily by emailing GamingOnLinux directly.
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Turkeysteaks 7 May 2024
Genuinely makes me so sad.
3 Likes
gradyvuckovic 7 May 2024
Why on Earth would you close down the studio that made Hi-Fi Rush?
WHY?
What is with companies like Microsoft, Sony, Epic, Ubisoft, EA, etc. Are they just opposed to the concept of 'good things in gaming'?
I hope all the talent from those studios were shifted into other studios and not just lost.
WHY?
What is with companies like Microsoft, Sony, Epic, Ubisoft, EA, etc. Are they just opposed to the concept of 'good things in gaming'?
I hope all the talent from those studios were shifted into other studios and not just lost.
12 Likes
Consolidation + Unsustainable business-practises = This.
Terrible for everyone who's affected - I hope that they'll all land on their feet with companies that'll appreciate their talents!
Last edited by Pengling on 7 May 2024 at 3:17 pm UTC
Terrible for everyone who's affected - I hope that they'll all land on their feet with companies that'll appreciate their talents!
Last edited by Pengling on 7 May 2024 at 3:17 pm UTC
12 Likes
Quoting: gradyvuckovicAre they just opposed to the concept of 'good things in gaming'?
Unless it's the concept of rising revenue/profits/stock-prices, they don't care.
1 Likes
Jahimself 7 May 2024
Exactly what I was expecting from Microsoft. Can't believe the EU validate deal of Blizzard Activision, when there were supposed conditions to allow the sale, and MS as usual never respect their conditions neither the EU Law. I tried many time to contact European commission by mail, to warm them about what will happen, and I never ever received a single mail of answer... Damn traitors...
This is hearbreaking as these were good dev studio for most of them...
This is hearbreaking as these were good dev studio for most of them...
5 Likes
dibz 7 May 2024
Quoting: gradyvuckovicWhy on Earth would you close down the studio that made Hi-Fi Rush?
WHY?
What is with companies like Microsoft, Sony, Epic, Ubisoft, EA, etc. Are they just opposed to the concept of 'good things in gaming'?
I hope all the talent from those studios were shifted into other studios and not just lost.
I wondered the same thing and read about the studio a bit this morning. To me, it sounds like this was inevitable once Microsoft acquired them; even if they stayed open they probably wouldn't have stayed like they were -- kind of like Rare.
I guess Shinji Mikami, the "big name" in that studio, had wanted to leave for years but felt a personal responsibility to the developers there. I guess once Microsoft took over, despite still having a producer-esque title he was treated like a regular employee instead. While he himself never linked his several statements, he left right after Hi-Fi Rush was released and started a new studio.
So in my mind it's not hard to paint a picture of what happened here and motivations. "Yay" Microsoft and the corporate machine?
5 Likes
Mountain Man 7 May 2024
A lot of industries, not just gaming, are still correcting after the China flu bump when people were forced to stay home for months and had government assistance money burning a hole in their pockets. Businesses ramped up production to meet the suddenly skyrocketing demand, and now that the good times are over, they have to trim the fat.
3 Likes
dibz 7 May 2024
Quoting: GuestSomebody can explain me why they sold themselves in the first place?
Were they forced somehow?
According to what I read earlier this morning they were in some sort of financial trouble, though at least what I read didn't really give any details. It probably also pays to remember that they didn't actually sell to Microsoft, they sold themselves to Zenimax/Bethesda, so were in turn aquired by Microsoft that way.
Yup, buy these companies for for their portfolios and brands, and the talent pool goes into resource management hell.
3 Likes
pilk 7 May 2024
Gods, seeing the team that made Hi-Fi Rush shutter hurts. That was a game I tried out on a game pass trial and I loved every second of it. Always hurts to see a game dev studio get bought out by a big company only to make a few games and shut them down after a year or two.
2 Likes
Interesting to Note:
I just noticed that [Hi-Fi Rush](https://store.steampowered.com/app/1817230/HiFi_RUSH/) is a game in the [Humble Choice for May](https://www.humblebundle.com/membership).
I just noticed that [Hi-Fi Rush](https://store.steampowered.com/app/1817230/HiFi_RUSH/) is a game in the [Humble Choice for May](https://www.humblebundle.com/membership).
1 Likes
I bet Obsidian is sweating bullets right now as their game is coming out soon. Also wondering about Double Fine, and maybe inXile. It's nice Microsoft got them through the pandemic and all, but the way the industry is looking they better deliver that value (the way Bethesda did not?), no matter what Uncle Phil says.
0 Likes
Linux_Rocks 8 May 2024
jonorok 8 May 2024
I don't have anything to add.
Plus one for big tech, on the backs of thousands of developers. Kinda like the Egyptian pyramids... Ah, well, we all die the same.
Plus one for big tech, on the backs of thousands of developers. Kinda like the Egyptian pyramids... Ah, well, we all die the same.
0 Likes
emphy 9 May 2024
I am sure there is some advanced spreadsheet-management behind this that makes some sense to the people making the decisions over at microsoft.
For the life of me, I don't see the benefit of those nokia-style close-em-down-acquisitions.
For the life of me, I don't see the benefit of those nokia-style close-em-down-acquisitions.
0 Likes
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