On social media, a former Obsidian developer struck by the recent wave of layoffs under the XBOX banner has revealed that ‘a good number of talented game devs’ had been stripped from the firm. This revelation came as Asha Sharma’s XBOX unveiled the drastic ‘reset’ that will see 3,200 employees lose their jobs over the next year, with 1,600 having already been let go.
The impacted developer, a writer and narrative designer named Jay Turner, dubbed the wave of redundancies ‘Microsoft sacrificial rituals’, which isn’t an awful way to look at it.
Obsidian Struck by Layoffs in XBOX Reset
Obsidian has been hit hard by XBOX’s massive reset action, but it’s not the most heavily impacted studio. It was suggested recently that ZeniMax Online Studios, the team behind The Elder Scrolls Online, has lost half its workforce in this action.
On social media, Jay Turner, formerly a senior writer and narrative designer at Obsidian and with credits associated with Dragon Age and Mass Effect, wrote:
I and a good number of very talented game devs were laid off by Obsidian as part of the Microsoft sacrificial rituals this morning.
If you or anyone you know is looking for a Senior Writer/ND with more than two decades’ experience in titles like Dragon Age and Mass Effect, please let me know!
In the comments, Turner’s associates and peers rushed to support him, with one user wishing him well and stating, ‘You’ve got a stellar track record, and it’s Obsidian’s loss.’
The XBOX reset has been monumentally disruptive already, leading to the brand parting ways with four relatively major studios, including Undead Labs, which is imminently about to release State of Decay 3.
This is all in a bid to make XBOX much more sustainable, and that involves slicing the headcount, cutting vendor spend, eliminating unnecessary management layers, and reducing complexity at the firm. It’s an inside-and-out round of actions that will have ramifications felt for years to come.
Are you shocked by the scope of XBOX’s grand reset plan? Let us know your thoughts on the Insider Gaming Discord server.
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Grant has been gaming for 30+ years and in the industry for 10+. You'll probably find him playing a post-apocalyptic game or an extraction shooter somewhere.
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