When Microsoft confirmed it was cutting 10,000 jobs in 2023, many expected the gaming division of the company to be impacted. Hours later, there’s now an idea of what specific areas are seeing the layoffs.
A new report from Bloomberg’s Jason Schreier states that both Halo developer 343 Industries and Starfield developer Bethesda Game Studios were impacted.
“Some of those who lost their jobs were veterans who had been with Xbox for more than a decade,” the report states.
Schreier says that while Microsoft won’t divulge specific numbers, he has learned that 343 Industries was “hit hard”.
“This comes in the wake of a long-running hiring freeze and a lot of contractor departures,” he said via Twitter.
What is happening at the studios?
343 Industries has been working on the latest entry in the Halo franchise, Halo Infinite, for years. Recently, it’s been working to improve the game and release more updates since its launch in 2021. For Bethesda, the company is working on numerous titles such as The Elder Scrolls VI, but none are bigger and more prominent at the moment than the upcoming Starfield.
Insider Gaming reached out to Microsoft for comment on the further potential impact to the gaming division. The company declined to comment specifically, and instead pointed to the earlier statement released by CEO Satya Nadella. There was also no answer to how the cuts by Microsoft will affect the development and release of future games and updates for the studios hit by the layoffs.
Aside from the job cuts, Microsoft is dealing with a lawsuit from the FTC regarding its attempted $69 billion purchase of Activision Blizzard.
For what it’s worth, Nadella made $54.95 million in 2022.
For more Insider Gaming, check out our story on a Motorsport Games employee threatening to release the source code for four titles due to unpaid wages.
