Former Xbox Studio Forced To Layoff 23 Employees To Ensure 'Survival Of Our Studio'

As terrible as it is and sounds with the current industry like it is I don't think they will be around for long, I hope they prove me wrong but I just can't see them lasting it's too aggressive market especially costs

It also seems that's Xbox/Microsoft issues have effected others remember John Remoero from Doom and his studio

It's the industry nowadays everyone can have a job and eventually gaming will collapse on itself or this can happen and it can survive and we all can continue to enjoy it.
I've enjoyed some of there games but if you don't make profit this is what happens unsuccessful studios aren't going to keep being financed by a sugar daddy if there sales are bad.
Xbox can't afford to keep financing mediocrity!

Releasing a good game that people actually want to buy would also secure the survival of their studio.

Don't hold your breath for that though. Given their track record.

Basically, Microsoft were propping them up.

Now we know that the cutbacks were actually reasonable. Microsoft were gaining nothing with studios like Double Fine.

Where are all the people who were blaming corporate greed and Microsoft being evil?

Nowhere to be seen. Par for the course. Easy to point fingers than to be introspective.

P.S. I'm more than happy for people to point the finger at Microsoft provided it's constructive criticism, in which case fire away.

As mentioned by other comments above, yes — this clearly shows that Microsoft was financially supporting studios that weren’t profitable. At some point, Tim Schafer’s creative experiments are fun, but without profitability behind them, it’s simply not sustainable.

They absolutely need to combine both: creativity and profitability. Tim Schafer should have a safeguard in place — someone capable of realistically assessing the future success of a project. Someone who can say: “No, you’re going too far. What’s the actual goal here? To please ten geeks in the back of the class? Rewrite your pitch and come back with a project that’s financially solid and viable.

And in reality, this is exactly what Xbox should be doing with its current studios. Creative freedom is fine, but not at the expense of profitability. Otherwise, the studios end up shooting themselves in the foot and putting Xbox in an impossible situation, forcing them to make tough decisions.

I get the sense that the recent management simplifications and new hires are moving in that direction. It’s essential to measure the potential of each project and not just let developers create anything without oversight. Developers can sometimes get stuck in their own bubble, disconnected from market realities.

That’s also why Aasha decided to refocus on strong franchises — the safe bets. That doesn’t mean they should stop creating new IPs, but it must always be done with the condition that the project is solid and financially viable.

@MrStark the only criticism you could level at MS in this case is that they gave them too much freedom.

Problem has been since Psychonauts their output has been too niche to sell well in the modern market. That should have been recognised in my view when managing the studio.

To flip that the other way though. That's exactly why they are cutting studios loose now. To fix mismanagement and bad financial decisions.

@fatpunkslim similar to what happened with Lionhead really. Especially under Peter Molyneux. Great creative brain - less so on the practical side.

MS admitted as much as the time it was closed they were managed badly. Luckily this time they picked the kinder option and let them back out as an indie.

Its going to be an uphill battle for them on their own.

I really do like this studio but they have always struggled to get funding. There is a great documentary on YouTube about the creation of psychonauts 2 showing the struggles.
Even before MS purchased them, I think they had just enough money to get them across the finish line. The extra funds from MS just helped.
It is a niche indie studio that was obviously being propped up by MS. I just hope they find their feet and deliver something cool. I am always up for something from Double Fine, except Kilm. Not a MP person.

@Jaxx420 comment #7 absolutely on the money. They make games that I absolutely love, but the mass market doesn't

It's a great studio that has produced masterpieces like Broken Age or Psychonauts. But its most recent games, far from being bad, were perhaps overly niche projects. Kiln is very original, but aside from the few who've tried it on Game Pass, I don't think anyone else has taken an interest in it.