Recent Microsoft Layoffs Impact Gaming, Security, and Sales
Microsoft has reportedly conducted further layoffs, affecting employees across its gaming, security, and sales divisions. The exact number of employees impacted remains undisclosed. Importantly, these job cuts are separate from a previous round of layoffs announced earlier in January.
The gaming industry has experienced significant workforce reductions in recent years, with numerous companies, including Microsoft, implementing substantial layoffs in 2024. This trend has affected both large studios and smaller independent developers, with recent examples including IllFonic (Predator: Hunting Grounds) and People Can Fly (Outriders). Rocksteady also announced layoffs following the mixed reception of Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League.
Microsoft itself has undertaken multiple rounds of layoffs since the beginning of 2024, impacting its Xbox division. In January 2024, 1,900 Xbox employees were let go, including staff at acquired companies like Activision Blizzard and ZeniMax. A subsequent September layoff affected 650 corporate and support employees at Activision Blizzard.
A new report from Business Insider (via GamesIndustry.biz) indicates another round of layoffs. While a Microsoft spokesperson confirmed the cuts, the precise number of affected employees remains unannounced. These latest reductions are distinct from earlier January cuts focused on underperforming employees outside the Xbox division.
Microsoft's Layoff Wave and its Context
The ongoing layoffs are particularly notable given Microsoft's recent acquisitions of major publishers like Bethesda and Activision Blizzard, and its achievement of a $3 trillion market valuation shortly after the January 2024 layoffs. The initial wave of cuts drew scrutiny from the FTC, which attempted to use the Activision Blizzard layoffs as a reason to block or reverse Microsoft's acquisition of the Call of Duty publisher.
Previous Microsoft layoffs have impacted various areas, including Xbox's physical retail teams, most of Blizzard's customer service team, and in-house developers such as Sledgehammer Games and Toys for Bob. Blizzard's unannounced survival game, codenamed Project Odyssey, was also canceled. The scale and impact of the latest layoffs on the Xbox gaming division remain uncertain.
