Arkane Austin and Tango Gameworks shut down by Microsoft

[ferratilis]

RIP

https://www.ign.com/articles/micros...orks-and-more-in-devastating-cuts-at-bethesda

Microsoft Closes Redfall Developer Arkane Austin, Hi-Fi Rush Developer Tango Gameworks, and More in Devastating Cuts at Bethesda​

Staff told via email.​

BY WESLEY YIN-POOLE

UPDATED: MAY 7, 2024 3:52 PM

POSTED: MAY 7, 2024 3:17 PM


Microsoft has closed a number of Bethesda studios, including Redfall maker Arkane Austin, Hi-Fi Rush and The Evil Within developer Tango Gameworks, and more in devastating cuts at Bethesda, IGN can confirm.

Alpha Dog Studios, maker of mobile game Mighty Doom, will also close. Roundhouse Games will be absorbed by The Elder Scrolls Online developer ZeniMax Online Studios. Microsoft did not say how many staff will lose their jobs, but significant layoffs are inevitable. IGN has asked Bethesda and Microsoft for comment.
On Redfall, the disastrous vampire co-op game will now not receive promised updates as Microsoft has ended all development on the game. Microsoft said Redfall will remain online to play, and it will provide a "make-good" offer for those who bought the Hero DLC.
Arkane Lyon, which is working on Marvel's Blade, survives the cull, as does Bethesda Game Studios (Fallout, The Elder Scrolls, Starfield), and Machine Games (Indiana Jones and The Great Circle). Doom developer id Software is also unaffected.
In an email to staff sent by Matt Booty, head of Xbox Game Studios, Microsoft blamed the cuts on a “reprioritization of titles and resources”. The email, verified by IGN, is below:

Today I’m sharing changes we are making to our Bethesda and ZeniMax teams. These changes are grounded in prioritizing high-impact titles and further investing in Bethesda’s portfolio of blockbuster games and beloved worlds which you have nurtured over many decades.

To double down on these franchises and invest to build new ones requires us to look across the business to identify the opportunities that are best positioned for success. This reprioritization of titles and resources means a few teams will be realigned to others and that some of our colleagues will be leaving us.

Here are the changes going into effect:

Arkane Austin – This studio will close with some members of the team joining other studios to work on projects across Bethesda. Arkane Austin has a history of making impactful and innovative games and it is a pedigree that everyone should be proud of. Redfall’s previous update will be its last as we end all development on the game. The game and its servers will remain online for players to enjoy and we will provide make-good offers to players who purchased the Hero DLC.

Alpha Dog Studios – This studio will also close. We appreciate the team’s creativity in bringing Doom to new players. Mighty Doom will be sunset on August 7 and we will be turning off the ability for players to make any purchases in the game.

Tango Gameworks – Tango Gameworks will also close. We are thankful for their contributions to Bethesda and players around the world. Hi-Fi Rush will continue to be available to players on the platforms it is today.

Roundhouse Games – The team at Roundhouse Games will be joining ZeniMax Online Studios (ZOS). Roundhouse has played a key role in many of our recent game launches and bringing them into ZOS to work on The Elder Scrolls Online will mean we can do even more to grow the world that millions of players call home.

With this consolidation of our Bethesda studio teams, so that we can invest more deeply in our portfolio of games and new IP, a small number of roles across select Bethesda publishing and corporate teams will also be eliminated.

Those whose roles will be impacted will be notified today, and we ask that you please treat your departing colleagues with respect and compassion. We will provide our full support to those who are impacted in today’s notifications and through their transitions, including severance benefits informed by local laws.

These changes are not a reflection of the creativity and skill of the talented individuals at these teams or the risks they took to try new things. I acknowledge that these changes are also disruptive to the various support teams across ZeniMax and Bethesda that bring our games to market. We are making these tough decisions to create capacity to increase investment in other parts of our portfolio and focus on our priority games.

Bethesda remains one of the key pillars of Xbox with a strong portfolio of amazing games and thriving communities. As we look to the future, there is an impressive line-up of games on the horizon. In 2024 alone we have Starfield Shattered Space, Fallout 76 Skyline Valley, Indiana Jones and The Great Circle, and The Elder Scrolls Online’s Golden Road. As we align our plans and resources to best set ourselves up for success in this complex and changing industry, our teams across Arkane Lyon, Bethesda Game Studios, id Software, MachineGames, ZeniMax Online Studios and the Bethesda publishing and corporate teams will be well-positioned to build new IP, explore new game concepts, and expand on our existing franchises.

- Matt

Microsoft's announcement of the cuts at Bethesda come over three months after the company announced plans to cut 1,900 staff from its video game workforce, and amid a boom time for Bethesda's Fallout series following the breakout hit Prime Video TV show. The closure of Tango Gameworks hits just over a year after the launch of Hi-Fi Rush, what many considered to be one of the best Xbox games in recent years. Hi-Fi Rush launched on PS5 as part of Microsoft's new multi-platform push in March. Microsoft plans a June showcase event to reveal its upcoming slate of games and potentially Xbox hardware plans.
"Great teams are sunsetting before our eyes again, and it's a fucking gut stab.

“
In a series of tweets, Arkane Lyon chief Dinga Bakaba hit out at the cuts, calling them "absolutely terrible." "To any executive reading this, friendly reminder that video games are an entertainment/cultural industry, and your business as a corporation is to take care of your artists/entertainers and help them create value for you," Bakaba continued.
"Don't throw us into gold fever gambits, don't use us as strawmen for miscalculations/blind spots, don't make our work environments darwinist jungles. You say we make you proud when we make a good game. Make us proud when times are tough. We know you can, we seen it before.
"For now, great teams are sunsetting before our eyes again, and it's a fucking gut stab. Lyon is safe, but please be tactful and discerning about all this, and respect affected folks' voice and leave it room to be heard, it's their story to tell, their feelings to express.
"Inside baseball, but if I read 'immersive sim curse' from the community, especially from a fellow dev, I swear to God... Please, let's talk about the *real* challenges instead of rehashing irrational anxieties of the past.
"Even more inside baseball, but with a very, very wide range, as a wise and sorely missed man said: 'Please Stop.' "
Layoffs are sweeping the video game industry, with a number of high-profile studios cutting staff or shutting down. In stark contrast to a year of blockbuster video game hits, one of the biggest ongoing industry trends in 2023 was the prevalence of mass layoffs, and they have continued into 2024. While actual figures are difficult to obtain, estimates suggest the number of workers laid off in games last year approached or exceeded 10,000. A recent GDC survey of developers suggests one-third of all game developers were impacted by layoffs last year, either directly or by witnessing them happen at their company.
Developing...

 

[Child of Malkav]

What did I say? That Arkane has one foot in the grave?

 

[ferratilis]

 

[whydoibother]

>Phill Spencer says he wants Microsoft to break into Japanese market
>they buy a Japanese studio
>only fund them for a AA game
>game is shadow-dropped without marketing
>still reviews well, praised and sells well for its budget
>year later close the studio anyways
>mfw

 

[ferratilis]

 

[Vyvian]

Phil Spencer is a fucking idiot.

 

[toro]

 

[Cyberarmy]

Really sad about this one, had so much fun with Hi-Fi Rush, even bought it via Xbox app...

 

[Tehdagah]

Well, it's over. The Evil Within 3 will never happen.

 

[Cologno]

Phil Spencer is a fucking idiot.

Yeah, it's really telling these dipshits don't see where the industry is going. I'm not a pronogstigator amd it's anecdotal, but looking at my Steam purchase receipts over the last few years, itw been away from big budget AAA titles and towards.. whatever Hifi Rush is.

 

[Dishonoredbr]

The only way to stay alive in this industry is being indie and stay way from Triple A studios.

 

[REhorror]

IT'S FUCKING OVER

THIS IS WHAT HAPPENS YOU GET BOUGHT BY BETHESDA AND THEN MICROSOFT!!!

 

[Fargus]

Long overdue. They were just a shell anyway. AAA gamedev slowly morphs into one big disgusting blob of slime to churn out curated, souless woke shit and life service multiplayer trash.

Roundhouse Games – The team at Roundhouse Games will be joining ZeniMax Online Studios (ZOS). Roundhouse has played a key role in many of our recent game launches and bringing them into ZOS to work on The Elder Scrolls Online will mean we can do even more to grow the world that millions of players call home.

Roundhouse Games are ex Humanhead. The devs of Rune and also cancelled Prey 2 which Bethesda destroyed because "muh quality standarts". After years of having to work on mobile trash to survive and getting bought out by Bethesda they ended up being a faceless cog in the machine to life support TES Online. Fate worse than death

 

[Wirdschowerdn]

https://www.ign.com/articles/micros...orks-and-more-in-devastating-cuts-at-bethesda

Dinga Bakaba of Arkane Lyon is painting a target on his back:

In a series of tweets, Arkane Lyon chief Dinga Bakaba hit out at the cuts, calling them "absolutely terrible." "To any executive reading this, friendly reminder that video games are an entertainment/cultural industry, and your business as a corporation is to take care of your artists/entertainers and help them create value for you," Bakaba continued.

"Don't throw us into gold fever gambits, don't use us as strawmen for miscalculations/blind spots, don't make our work environments darwinist jungles. You say we make you proud when we make a good game. Make us proud when times are tough. We know you can, we seen it before.

"For now, great teams are sunsetting before our eyes again, and it's a fucking gut stab. Lyon is safe, but please be tactful and discerning about all this, and respect affected folks' voice and leave it room to be heard, it's their story to tell, their feelings to express.

"Inside baseball, but if I read 'immersive sim curse' from the community, especially from a fellow dev, I swear to God... Please, let's talk about the *real* challenges instead of rehashing irrational anxieties of the past.

"Even more inside baseball, but with a very, very wide range, as a wise and sorely missed man said: 'Please Stop.' "

 

[Spukrian]

Oh well.

Maybe Harvey can join Wolfeye now?

 

[ferratilis]

Well, it's over. The Evil Within 3 will never happen.

Even if it did happen, it would be shit. Mikami left last year and took some of the developers with him. Now he has a new studio, so I guess you should look forward to whatever he's working on. He must've sensed something like this would happen, which is probably why he left.

 

[Zboj Lamignat]

Dinga Bakaba

Sounds like a name someone would give to a dog in a movie. Which would explain a lot.

hello this is arkane

 

[Naraya]

No they don't anymore.

https://www.ign.com/articles/micros...orks-and-more-in-devastating-cuts-at-bethesda

 

[Wirdschowerdn]

Next up: Microsoft kills Obsidian TOW2 and orders them to create New Vegas 2 instead.

And everyone's like Yaaaaaaaaaaaaaaayy!!!!

 

[Elttharion]

Obsidian sweating bullets right now.

 

[ferratilis]

No, first Avowed will come out, no one will care about it, and THEN they will kill Obsidian.

 

[whydoibother]

No, first Avowed will come out, no one will care about it, and THEN they will kill Obsidian.

If Avowed comes out soon, and Baldur's Gate 3's afterglow is still in the air, Microsoft may turn them around quickly to make something like that.
Same with Bioware, if their Dragon Age comes out fast enough, they might get rebooked for a cRPG.
This is even more likely if Wizards announces more high budget cRPG type games being made, not by Larian. If big money is trying to turn BG3 into a fad, and push it with heavy marketing, every large publisher will try to get with the wave.

 

[Ivan]

Oh well.

Maybe Harvey can join Wolfeye now?

Ricardo Bare could tag team with Wolf Eye....

 

[Butter]

https://www.ign.com/articles/micros...orks-and-more-in-devastating-cuts-at-bethesda

Dinga Bakaba of Arkane Lyon is painting a target on his back:

In a series of tweets, Arkane Lyon chief Dinga Bakaba hit out at the cuts, calling them "absolutely terrible." "To any executive reading this, friendly reminder that video games are an entertainment/cultural industry, and your business as a corporation is to take care of your artists/entertainers and help them create value for you," Bakaba continued.

"Don't throw us into gold fever gambits, don't use us as strawmen for miscalculations/blind spots, don't make our work environments darwinist jungles. You say we make you proud when we make a good game. Make us proud when times are tough. We know you can, we seen it before.

"For now, great teams are sunsetting before our eyes again, and it's a fucking gut stab. Lyon is safe, but please be tactful and discerning about all this, and respect affected folks' voice and leave it room to be heard, it's their story to tell, their feelings to express.

"Inside baseball, but if I read 'immersive sim curse' from the community, especially from a fellow dev, I swear to God... Please, let's talk about the *real* challenges instead of rehashing irrational anxieties of the past.

"Even more inside baseball, but with a very, very wide range, as a wise and sorely missed man said: 'Please Stop.' "

Wow that's rough Dingus. You guys should have total job security when you produce garbage.

 

[Wirdschowerdn]

PR speak == Lying through the nose.