Xbox’s massive layoffs have hit Zenimax and Bethesda hard. The Elder Scrolls Online team at Zenimax Online Studios has seen half of its active staff cut with some wondering if the MMO’s content plans can continue to function. Bethesda Game Studios, the teams behind Fallout 76 and The Elder Scrolls 6, have also been hit.
Right now, the true scale of these layoffs are still being discovered. The Outer Worlds and Avowed studio Obsidian Entertainment has been hit; DOOM developer Id Software has reportedly lost half of its development team, and other studios have also seen cuts. This is alongside Xbox’s recent divestments of Ninja Theory, Double Fine, Compulsion Games, and Undead Labs.
In a letter to staff acquired by IGN, Bethesda boss Jill Braff told the remaining devs that the ongoing cuts “reflect the realities of our industry and business—and our responsibility to ensure Bethesda is operating from a more stable foundation”.
Braff told developers that Bethesda will “meaningfully evolve how we operate”, citing that Bethesda has “organised its business around the individual roadmaps of our largely independent development studios” for “decades”.
“This model enabled us to create some of the industry’s most beloved franchises. However, rising player expectations, increasing development complexity, and a more competitive market have changed the economics of our industry,” Braff said.
As Bethesda continues working on The Elder Scrolls 6’s active development as well as pre-production on other projects, Braff said that the studio is shifting to a model “that focuses on our strongest franchises and determining the content roadmap that best serves out players and Bethesda as a whole”.
“From there, we’ll align the right talent, technology, and resources across the organisation to deliver on those priorities,” the Bethesda boss said. This matches recent reports that Xbox will focus on its largest and most successful IP as it attempts to “reset” the business. These include Fallout, The Elder Scrolls, DOOM, Quake, Wolfenstein, Halo, Forza, and Gears of War.
Braff claimed that Bethesda and Zenimax will now be “working more closely across the organisation, sharing expertise and capabilities, and focusing our investments on the opportunities with the greatest potential”. With this in mind, it seems clear that Bethesda’s more experimental projects—such as Starfield—will be put to the wayside as they focus on providing new entries in the studio’s largest franchises.
Of course, there are some discrepancies with this plan. While DOOM and Quake are listed as major players for Xbox’s future, Id Software has been sliced in half. Additionally, with further layoffs planned to occur later this year, will Bethesda have enough left to focus on its biggest franchises without heavy contractor use?
