The head of Microsoft Gaming has taken advantage of the Xbox Game Showcase to answer questions from the press about the closure of Tango or Arkane Austin
Although Microsoft’s release schedule for the second half of the year is promising and the euphoria invites us to talk only about video games, this year will also go down in history as the one in which Xbox managers carried out thousands of layoffs and they decided close some of the community’s favorite studios. Tango Gameworks, Arkane Austin and Alpha Dog Games are casualties that many fans will remember for years and since they announced their closure we miss the brand’s top managers giving explanations. Now, however, Phil Spencer has made his first public statements about the topic.
Phil Spencer talks about Xbox layoffs
Phil Spencer granted a IGN interview on the occasion of the Xbox Games Showcase. In it, interesting topics were discussed such as premiere of Doom: The Dark Ages on PlayStation wave arrival of Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 to Game Pass. However, what caught the most attention was that the director of Microsoft’s gaming division did not avoid questions regarding layoffs. He assured that the closure of a studio is always a hard moment and that it had not been a pleasant decision for the company. However, he believes it was an important sacrifice since Xbox’s business must be sustainable.
“The closure of any studio is hard (…) It’s a very hard decision for them. I’ve tried to make sure, through compensation and other things, that we were doing the right thing for the team members. This was not an issue from my PR or Xbox’s. It was just about the teams. In the end, I have said many times that I have to run a sustainable business within the company and grow. That sometimes means making difficult decisions.. They are not decisions that I like, but they are decisions that someone must make. We will continue forward. We will continue to invest and try to make Xbox the best business possible to ensure that there are shows as good as the [Xbox Games Showcase 2024] what you saw today,” he explained.
The Xbox leader also wanted to take a stand against what has become one of the most popular beliefs in recent months and explained that the pressure from Microsoft directors on Xbox has not increased. “The support we have from the company, and my boss is Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella… They give us a lot of room to grow our business,” said the president. On this matter, he pointed out that the current situation was not very different from when he was allowed to carry out such risky decisions as carrying out PC all brand games or start working on Game Pass.
Even if Xbox’s business is more sustainable today, it would be a lie to say that the brand image has not deteriorated due to the events that have taken place over the past few months. HiFi Rush It has been, for many, one of the company’s best ‘first parties’ in recent years and closing the studio in charge of its creation is not something that has sat well. Despite everything, the company hopes to overcome it through brute force with, now, a calendar full of great releases.
In 3DGames | Microsoft reveals the release date for Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 and sends a clear message to players. From now on, everyone will be treated equally.
In 3DGames | The release date of Xbox and Game Pass’ most anticipated RPG has been revealed by mistake. We already know exactly when Avowed will be released.
