As the year began, layoffs in the gaming industry were at an all-time high, and one of the biggest was at Microsoft. Having bought Activision Blizzard a few months earlier, many roles were made redundant, and they were hit hardest when 1,900 people had to leave their jobs.
Since then, things have calmed down somewhat, but unfortunately we are not done yet, and Microsoft now announces that another 650 people will lose their jobs. In an email to the employees, Microsoft’s gaming boss Phil Spencer writes:
“As part of aligning our post-acquisition team structure and managing our business, we have made the decision to eliminate approximately 650 roles across Microsoft Gaming-mostly corporate and supporting functions-to organize our business for long term success.”
Most of those affected are said to be at Activision Blizzard, and Spencer promises in the letter that “no games, devices or experiences” will be affected by this.
That’s all well, but of course we regret this and hope as usual that everyone affected will land as softly as possible.
Thanks, Game File.