Xbox Eliminates 268 More Roles as Reorganization Continues Through 2027

Xbox has eliminated 268 roles in a continued restructuring of its first-party operations, bringing the company roughly three-quarters through an announced reorganization that began in July. The July plan called for approximately 3,200 role eliminations across fiscal 2027, with roughly 1,600 roles cut in the initial wave.

Matt Booty, Xbox's chief content officer, confirmed that the latest changes represent significant progress toward completing the reset. The reorganization involves major shifts in studio responsibilities and some studio separations.

Playground Games and Turn 10 are combining into a single studio focused on Forza and Fable development. Xbox noted that the teams have collaborated on Forza for more than a decade. The consolidation follows more than 70 layoffs at Turn 10 last year.

Activision's role within Xbox is expanding to manage Rare and World's Edge alongside Call of Duty. A purpose-built Activision team will develop the next Halo game, separate from ongoing Call of Duty work. Halo Studios will continue with a smaller team supporting the Halo community and existing titles.

Bethesda's responsibilities now include Obsidian Entertainment. The studio will continue work on Grounded and a new Fallout game with Bethesda Game Studios. King, the developer behind Candy Crush, is taking on Microsoft Casual Games.

Studio separations have also progressed. Compulsion Games and Double Fine returned to independent management in August with their intellectual property, back catalogues, and runway funding intact. Undead Labs has completed a similar transition. State of Decay 3 remains in development with a new publisher and is scheduled for 2027 on Xbox Series X|S, PC, cloud, Game Pass, Steam, and PlayStation 5.

Ninja Theory's future remains uncertain. Two separate acquisition agreements fell through, and Xbox has begun employee consultation over a proposed studio closure while exploring other options. The studio's upcoming title Senua is still announced for 2027 across Xbox Series X|S, PC, cloud, Game Pass, Steam, and PlayStation 5, though no status update has been provided since the September 22 restructuring announcement.

Arkane Studios' situation also remains unresolved. Management began required consultation with its Works Council in July to review strategic options, a process expected to continue through the end of 2026. Xbox will provide a comprehensive update on October 6 during an all-team town hall reviewing progress and next steps.