Summary

• Microsoft has reportedly conducted further layoffs affecting its gaming, security, and sales divisions.
• The exact number of employees impacted remains undisclosed.
• These layoffs are separate from previous rounds of cuts announced in January and earlier this month.

Microsoft has reportedly implemented another round of layoffs across its gaming, security, and sales divisions. The gaming industry has faced significant challenges in recent years, with numerous companies, including Microsoft, announcing substantial job cuts in 2024. These cuts have affected both large studios and smaller indie developers, with recent examples including IllFonic (Predator: Hunting Grounds) and People Can Fly (Outriders). Rocksteady also recently announced layoffs following the mixed reception of Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League.

Microsoft itself has experienced several rounds of layoffs since the beginning of 2024. In January, the company announced the termination of 1,900 employees within its Xbox gaming division, impacting acquired subsidiaries like Activision Blizzard and ZeniMax. A further 650 corporate and support staff at Activision Blizzard were laid off in September.

A new report from Business Insider (via GamesIndustry.biz) suggests another round of layoffs has occurred. While a Microsoft spokesperson confirmed the cuts, the precise number of employees affected remains unspecified. These latest reductions are distinct from earlier cuts targeting underperforming employees unrelated to Xbox.

Microsoft's Layoffs Continue

Microsoft's ongoing layoffs are particularly notable given its recent acquisitions of major publishers like Bethesda and Activision Blizzard, and its achievement of a $3 trillion market valuation shortly after the January 2024 layoffs. The initial wave of cuts drew scrutiny from the FTC, which attempted to use them as grounds to oppose the Microsoft-Activision Blizzard merger.

Previous Microsoft layoffs have impacted Xbox's retail teams, much of Blizzard's customer service, and in-house developers such as Sledgehammer Games and Toys for Bob. Blizzard's unannounced survival game, codenamed Project Odyssey, was also canceled following these cuts. The scale of the latest layoffs remains unconfirmed, and their impact on the Xbox gaming division is currently unknown.