Xbox Weighs Closing 5 Studios and Canceling Blade as Layoffs Start July 6
Updated
Updated · Engadget · Jun 30
Xbox Weighs Closing 5 Studios and Canceling Blade as Layoffs Start July 6
3 articles · Updated · Engadget · Jun 30
Summary
July 6 is the target start date for sweeping Xbox cuts that could shut Arkane and end Marvel's Blade, with Microsoft also weighing closures or sales of Compulsion, Double Fine, Ninja Theory and Undead Labs.
Blade has gone more than two years without an update, and The Verge reported the project is over budget and delayed, making it a central casualty of Xbox's push to trim an "over-extended" business.
A memo from CEO Asha Sharma and content chief Matt Booty warned the division had become unsustainable, while CWA-represented Xbox union members demanded transparency and good-faith talks ahead of the firings.
The move extends a multiyear retrenchment after Microsoft's $69 billion Activision Blizzard deal: 1,900 Xbox-related jobs were cut in early 2024, more studios were closed later that year, and another 9,000 companywide layoffs hit in 2025.