Xbox Cuts 268 More Jobs and Hands Future Halo Games to Activision

Xbox is cutting hundreds of additional jobs and making sweeping changes to its flagship Halo franchise as part of an ongoing company-wide reset.

The latest layoffs will affect employees at the studios currently producing Halo. Activision, the publisher behind Call of Duty, will be responsible for developing future Halo games.

Windows Central’s Jez Corden described the decision as a “drastic step,” while gaming analyst Christopher Dolling questioned whether the change would revive what was once considered Xbox’s “crown jewel.”

Xbox’s Halo changes raise questions about the franchise’s future

The restructuring comes as concerns grow over the future of other major Xbox studios, including Cambridge-based developer Ninja Theory.

Xbox CEO Asha Sharma said in July that the BAFTA-winning Hellblade developer would be spun off along with four other companies as part of a dramatic downsizing.

However, Xbox chief content officer Matt Booty said in a blog post published Tuesday that attempts to find a buyer for Ninja Theory had failed, with “two separate deals” falling through.

Booty said Ninja Theory will now begin discussions with employees about the proposed closure, although potential acquisition talks are continuing.

Of the other four affected companies, three are now back in business. Discussions with Arcane remain “ongoing,” Booty added.

Xbox announces 268 additional job cuts

Xbox’s announcement of 268 additional job cuts follows Sharma’s disclosure in July that the company was “beginning the most extensive restructuring in Xbox history.”

A total of 1,600 jobs were cut with immediate effect, with an overall planned loss of 3,600 positions. Xbox says its restructuring is now three-quarters complete.

In a July announcement, Sharma said Microsoft’s gaming division was not “healthy.” She added that although platforms such as the Game Pass subscription service had “created meaningful value,” the service was not growing quickly enough.

In an interview with the BBC in August, Sharma also cited the “crisis” of rising computing prices and hardware costs as additional external pressures on the company.