AUSTIN, Texas — Months after revealing that 1,900 employees in Microsoft's gaming division would be laid off, several studios in Xbox's division will be shut down, including one in Austin.
"Redfall" maker Arkane Austin is part of the cuts at Bethesda. According to Matt Booty, the head of Xbox Game Studios at Microsoft, Arkane Austin and two other studios will be shut down.
"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," Booty wrote in an internal memo obtained by KVUE.
Alpha Dog Studios and Tango Gameworks will also be shut down, according to the memo. A fourth studio, Roundhouse Games, will join the ZeniMax Online Studios team. Meanwhile, France-based Arkane Lyon will survive the layoffs to work on an adaptation of Marvel's Blade.
Arkane opened its Austin studio in 2006. According to the memo, some employees at Arkane Austin will be laid off, while others will be moved to other studios.
"This is absolutely terrible ... You say we make you proud when we make a good game. Make us proud when times are tough," Arkane Lyon Chief Dinga Bakaba posted on social media following the announcement. "Great teams are sunsetting before our eyes again."
It remains unclear how many people at Arkane Austin will be laid off at this time.
