Microsoft is reportedly laying off a further 650 people from its gaming staff, 7 months after cutting 1,900 roles across ZeniMax, Xbox, and Activision Blizzard

Xbox Gamescom 2023 logo featuring a stylized city skyline in green
(Image credit: Xbox)

Around 650 people are reportedly being laid off from Microsoft's gaming team, according to an email allegedly sent to staff by Xbox head Phil Spencer. 

As reported by Game File, Spencer calls today "one of the challenging days" in his email, in which he says that the decision to cut staff was made as part of the company "aligning our post-acquisition team structure and managing our business," and to "organize our business for long term success." 

The email reportedly states that the roles affected are "mostly corporate and supporting functions," and Game File adds that, according to a source familiar with the situation, this will mostly affect Activision Blizzard staff. In addition, it's reported that no business unit leaders at Xbox or any of its affiliated gaming-related teams will be affected. 

Spencer allegedly goes on to say that no game studios are being closed as part of these latest layoffs, and no "games, devices or experiences are being canceled," even if "there are some impacts to other teams as they adapt to shifting priorities and manage the lifecycle and performance of games."

It's already been a challenging year for Microsoft Gaming employees. Back in January, it was announced that around 1,900 people from across the Activision Blizzard, Zenimax, and Xbox teams were being laid off. Later, it was announced that studios Arkane Austin and Tango Gameworks were being closed, too (although the latter was later revived by Krafton). 

In today's email, Spencer reportedly says the company is "deeply grateful for the contributions of our colleagues," noting that affected staff will be supported with "exit packages" that include "severance, extended healthcare, and outplacement services" in the US, and adds: "I know that going through more changes like this is hard, but even in the most trying times, this team has been able to come together and show one another care and kindness as we work to continue delivering for our players."

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Catherine Lewis
News Writer

I'm one of GamesRadar+'s news writers, who works alongside the rest of the news team to deliver cool gaming stories that we love. After spending more hours than I can count filling The University of Sheffield's student newspaper with Pokemon and indie game content, and picking up a degree in Journalism Studies, I started my career at GAMINGbible where I worked as a journalist for over a year and a half. I then became TechRadar Gaming's news writer, where I sourced stories and wrote about all sorts of intriguing topics. In my spare time, you're sure to find me on my Nintendo Switch or PS5 playing through story-driven RPGs like Xenoblade Chronicles and Persona 5 Royal, nuzlocking old Pokemon games, or going for a Victory Royale in Fortnite.

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