Latest Xbox Game News & Updates
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🖥 Xbox, PCEven Obsidian couldn't escape the Xbox cuts, with losses ranging from a 21-year veteran artist to an engineer who'd only been there 2 months
No news was not, in fact, good news.
🟩 Xbox, Multi-platformXbox CEO Reflects On Massive Cuts: “We Simply Spread Ourselves Too Thin”
Xbox CEO Asha Sharma has shared new details on the significant changes at Xbox(https://www.gamespot.com/articles/xbox-layoffs-studio-closures-and-spin-offs-everything-announced-today/), including mass layoffs, studio spinoffs, and more. In an interview with Fortune(https://fortune.com/2026/07/06/exclusive-xbox-ceo-asha-sharma-job-cuts-studios-axed-layoffs), Sharma said Microsoft undertook "a bunch of bets" years ago to help grow the business, including Game Pass, going multiplatform, and beefing up its studio base. These bets did not pay off(https://www.gamespot.com/articles/new-xbox-ceo-admits-game-pass-bet-has-not-worked-out/), and in the process of pursuing these new ventures, "We inherently didn't focus on the core business," Sharma said. "The number one measure of your strategy is what you put your resources behind, and we simply spread ourselves too thin," she said. !(https://www.gamespot.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/sharma-1.png?w=1024) Asha Sharma is making major cuts to Xbox. In a memo to staff, Sharma said the Xbox business, as it stands today, is not in a healthy place. If it were, Sharma said the company would be able to "weather the shock of the hardware crisis" that Xbox is facing now due to the AI-fueled run on components and memory. "With an unhealthy Xbox, it becomes really challenging, and it accelerates a lot of the changes we need to make,” Sharma said. The restructuring of Xbox is part of a "reset," and a big part of that is downsizing. About 1,600 people at Xbox are losing their jobs today, with another 1,600 cuts to come throughout the next year. Additionally, Microsoft is spinning out Double Fine and Compulsion, and selling off Ninja Theory and Undead Labs, though the buyers for those companies have not been confirmed as of yet. Another studio, Arkane Lyon, is in the "consultation" process(https://www.gamespot.com/articles/heres-whats-going-on-with-marvels-blade-and-its-developer-amid-xbox-reset/) and that will seemingly determine the fate of the studio and its in-development project, Marvel's Blade. The layoffs didn't just hit Xbox, as Microsoft is laying off staff across the entire company, with some 4,800 positions (about 2% of the company's workforce) affected in the latest round of cuts.
🖥 Xbox, PC, Multi-platformThe Steam Machine’s Red Line Of Death Is Less Scary, And More Useful, Than You Might Think
With the Steam Machine starting to land in some lucky buyers hands, a few of the gremlins in Valve's compact living-room PC have started to surface. But while some might remind you of infamous hardware failures of old, many of them are smartly designed errors that you can, for the most part, resolve yourself. Last week, the Steam Machine subreddit was rocked with what the community described as the "Red Line of Death,"(https://www.reddit.com/r/steammachine/comments/1ulzo6a/wellthesteammachinewasprettycoolforthe20/) a reference to the catastrophic Red Ring of Death that plagued early Xbox 360 units. The users in question seemed to think the Steam Machine in question was bricked and beyond repair, but a few resets and some BIOS updates later, the PC was restored. Perhaps most interesting was how it surfaced the smart way in which Valve is relaying vital hardware information when something does fail. The error this unfortunate Reddit user encounterd was probably the worst of the lot, with the half width, breathing red LED bar indicating a GPU failure. Different bar widths with different animations point to entirely different issues, however. Our own Steam Machine usage has run into another error, where the Steam Machine displayed a full, solid red bar, indicating an overheating issue. Steam support(https://help.steampowered.com/en/faqs/view/6945-03B8-1EC9-0237) has a full page breaking down the meanings of different light bar colors and animations, and what they're telling you about the state of your Steam Machine. While some less crucial ones will be overwritten by your custom light bar settings, ones paired with critical errors will always be displayed. They give you an easy way to communicate what might be wrong with your Steam Machine should you need to contact support, which many of the worst issues suggest you do. Valve's Steam Machine went on sale last month, with a starting price of $1050(https://www.gamespot.com/articles/portable-steam-machine-gets-price-and-release-wind/1100-6429623/). It's a price that Valve itself wasn't happy with, but explained that its increase was similar to the recent Steam Deck price hike(https://www.gamespot.com/articles/steam-deck-gets-massive-price-hike/) that was similarly drive by the ongoing memory crisis.
🟩 Xbox, Multi-platformAll Xbox studios remaining following mass layoffs and restructure
Here's what we know about every studio remaining at Xbox following the company's mass layoff announcement.
🟩 Xbox, Multi-platformHere’s What’s Going On With Marvel’s Blade And Its Developer Amid Xbox “Reset”
Microsoft is undergoing a major shakeup that involves mass layoffs, studio sell-offs, and other significant changes(https://www.gamespot.com/articles/xbox-layoffs-studio-closures-and-spin-offs-everything-announced-today/) as part of a "reset" of the business. While we have learned that Ninja Theory and Undead Labs are being sold off(https://www.gamespot.com/articles/state-of-decay-and-hellblade-devs-are-being-sold-but-buyers-remain-mysterious-for-now/) and Double Fine and Compulsion are going independent, we don't yet know what the future holds for Arkane Lyon and its long-in-development Blade game. The French studio is undergoing "consultation," but its fate has yet to be determined. There is a lot we still don't know, but for now, here's everything you need to know about Arkane Lyon and Marvel's Blade leading up to the news today. Entering consultation Arkane Lyon is based in France, and due to local labor laws, the studio is entering "required consultation" with its local Works Council. This process will include a "review of potential strategic options." But there is a lot we don't know. Could Arkane Lyon be sold off like Ninja Theory and Undead Labs? Go independent like Double Fine and Compulsion? Shut down like its sister studio Arkane Austin before it? Also unknown is what will happen with the Blade game itself. Microsoft said in its announcement that no publicly announced first-party games are being canceled in the "reset" process(https://www.gamespot.com/articles/no-announced-xbox-games-are-getting-axed-in-microsoft-layoffs-company-says/), but if Arkane Lyon is sold, it's anyone's guess as to what may happen to the project. Disney, which owns Marvel, would presumably be involved in these negotiations as well. Arkane founder jokes about buying the studio Arkane co-founder Raphael Colantonio, who no longer works there, responded to Sharma's post to ask about how much Arkane might cost to buy. "Regarding Arkane... how much? I'm asking for a friend," he said, with a laughing emoji. https://twitter.com/rafcolantonio/status/2074142859666551185 Delayed and over-budget, apparently A report from The Verge(https://www.theverge.com/report/959467/microsoft-xbox-cancel-blade-game-arkane-studios-closure?viewtoken=eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiJ9.eyJpZCI6Inp0bjNNQk1pVm0iLCJwIjoiL3JlcG9ydC85NTk0NjcvbWljcm9zb2Z0LXhib3gtY2FuY2VsLWJsYWRlLWdhbWUtYXJrYW5lLXN0dWRpb3MtY2xvc3VyZSIsImV4cCI6MTc4MzI3MDkyMSwiaWF0IjoxNzgyODM4OTIxfQ.pOFMRE5pUQgOYGX0scwb6LrEhrfZuecr50Fysx3fd8&utmmedium=gift-link) said Marvel's Blade was over-budget and had been delayed internally. The game was said to be eyeing a 2026 release but was delayed internally to late 2027. That's all the info the report had to share, but it came after Blade was a no-show at the Xbox Games Showcase in June. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wB9ye56mSfk Announced in 2023 and not much to show Blade was announced in December 2023 at The Game Awards that year(https://www.gamespot.com/articles/blade-game-announced-by-deathloop-dev-arkane-lyon/1100-6519805/), but the reveal trailer was CG and many believed it was more of a mood piece meant to hype fans up and help developer Arkane Lyon recruit staff to work on it. Game director Dinga Bakaba mentioned on stage that it’s a third-person action-adventure game that takes place in Paris. No gameplay footage has been released. Prior to developing Deathloop, Arkane Lyon worked on both Dishonored(https://www.gamespot.com/games/dishonored/) and Dishonored 2(https://www.gamespot.com/games/dishonored-2/). The studio certainly has a knack for world-building and level design, and it will be interesting to see how that is applied to a well-established universe. A Blade film starring Mahershala Ali has been in the works for a long, long time, suffering multiple setbacks throughout its troubled development.
🟩 Xbox, Multi-platformDishonored co-creator asks Xbox CEO 'how much' to buy Arkane
Arkane, the studio behind Dishonored and more, has its future in question as Xbox cuts 4 other studios and lays off 3,200.
🖥 Xbox, PCElder Scrolls Online developer left reeling by Xbox layoffs—with teams gutted, senior talent gone, and roadmaps 'shifting' as a result
A grim outcome from Xbox's latest round of reaping.
🟩 Xbox, Multi-platformXbox Layoffs “Heavily Impact” The Accessibility Team, Too
As part of the 1,600 people being let go by Xbox during its big reset(https://www.gamespot.com/articles/xbox-layoffs-studio-closures-and-spin-offs-everything-announced-today/) on July 6, it appears that the company's Accessibility division has been hit pretty heavily as well. According to a now-deleted July 6 Bluesky post, a senior user researcher for accessibility at ZeniMax Media shared that they were caught in the blast zone, too. They also revealed that the "accessibility staff overall seems heavily impacted," with "multiple people on the Bethesda User Research Team" getting laid off. On LinkedIn, the researcher reshared a post(https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:7478110140462804992/) by Zach Clothier, the accessibility test lead for the Microsoft gaming accessibility testing service, who announced his departure after nearly three years in his role. It's unclear how many other people have been affected, but according to that now former ZeniMax Media senior researcher, it sounds like the team has been decimated amidst these layoffs. This comes during Disability Pride Month, which is supposed to honor the history, achievements, and experiences of the disability community. A Microsoft spokesperson told GameSpot over email that despite the restructuring, the company plans to continue its work in making gaming more accessible for all. "Accessibility remains a priority for Xbox," the spokesperson said. "While we've made changes across the team, creating more accessible gaming experiences for players has not changed." Xbox's Accessibility Team is responsible for some wonderful features and technologies that make gaming easier for all players. This includes things like the Adaptive Controller(https://www.gamespot.com/articles/microsofts-xbox-adaptive-controller-went-through-a-unique-evolution-during-the-design-process/1100-6484917/) and its various attachments(https://www.gamespot.com/articles/xbox-adaptive-joystick-is-available-now/1100-6530210/), as well as accessibility options(https://support.forza.net/hc/en-us/articles/51644264237075-Forza-Horizon-6-Accessibility-Support) in games such as Forza Horizon 6(https://www.gamespot.com/games/forza-horizon-6/) to change everything from the way it looks to the way it plays. 1,600 people will lose their jobs on July 6, while another 1,600 will lose their jobs over the next 12 months. These cuts make up about 20% of Microsoft's staff. Some studios have been cut loose, with Ninja Theory and Undead Labs being sold to a mysterious buyer(https://www.gamespot.com/articles/state-of-decay-and-hellblade-devs-are-being-sold-but-buyers-remain-mysterious-for-now/). Meanwhile, the fate of Arkane Studios is still unknown, and both Id Software and ZeniMax have lost staff(https://www.gamespot.com/articles/xbox-layoffs-hit-id-software-and-zenimax-as-focus-shifts-to-bigger-franchises/) so that those studios could shift toward focusing on bigger franchises.
🖥 Xbox, PCBethesda Game Studios and ZeniMax hit hard by Xbox layoffs, says union
ZeniMax Online Studios and id Software have survived the latest bloodbath at Microsoft, but it sounds like they've been cut deeply.
🟩 Xbox, Multi-platformFormer Xbox studios Double Fine and Compulsion will keep games after going indie
Microsoft is spinning off four of its Xbox game studios - Compulsion Games, Double Fine Productions, Ninja Theory, and Undead Labs - as part of the restructuring announced today. However, two that are going independent, Double Fine and Compulsion, will get to keep their franchises and games catalogs, according to Xbox CEO Asha Sharma. "Compulsion &8230;
🟩 Xbox, Multi-platformUndead Labs spent eight years as an Xbox studio and still didn't make State of Decay 3
As Xbox cuts ties with Ninja Theory, Compulsion, and Double Fine, Undead Labs' case is the worst but not the only case of mismanagement
🖥 Xbox, PCArkane temporarily spared in Xbox bloodbath thanks to French law, but its future is up in the air
Putting all my hopes and dreams on an independent Arkane.