Microsoft will soon, depending on when this latest round of layoffs are actioned, have let go over 2,500 total staff sincestates that 650 workers across"mostly corporate and supporting functions" will be laid off. In an email sent to staff, head of Xbox Phil Spencer noted that the removals were"part of aligning our post-acquisition team structure and managing our business.
After stating that the cuts—again, 650 jobs' worth of them—somehow make Microsoft's"corporate and supporting teams and resources are aligned for sustainable future growth", Spencer specifically mentions that"no games, devices or experiences are being cancelled and no studios are being closed as part of these adjustments today."
I just can't shake the feeling we're thoroughly in 'time is a flat circle' territory, here. In terms of the wider games industry, the slowbleeding money, large-scale acquisitions and optimistic live service ventures leading to a rush to trim the fat… I hope, and doubt, that these aftershocks will be the last out of Microsoft for a while.