Sometimes it's hard to be a video game fan. About four studios under Bethesda unfortunately have to close, which of course included a lot of layoffs. And that's only the most recent update in a tumultuous two years.
Microsoft's acquisitions
The studios that closed are Arkane Austin, Alpha Dog Games, Tango Gameworks and Roundhouse Games. All four of these were bought up by Bethesda in the past, and they had relative freedom.
In 2021, as part of a major initiative to acquire studios, Microsoft bought Bethesda and all that goes with it. In the same initiative, Microsoft also amassed Mojang (Minecraft), Rare (Banjo games, Sea of Thieves) and the biggest, Activision/Blizzard (World of Warcraft, Call of Duty), among others.
Such acquisitions are rarely good news for employees. It comes with downscaling and layoffs. It is also bad news for gamers, with the first concern being whether games will still come out on our consoles of choice. Microsoft promised at the time that Bethesda would continue to release games on PlayStation. Then they immediately broke their promise by making Starfield Xbox and PC exclusive. The Activision Blizzard acquisition required them to make a similar promise, so assume they are not going to keep it.
But which games are playable on which is really the least of our worries. With a big company above you, developers have more people to interfere with their process. This prevents them from making the games they want. For studios like Arkane, there are even multiple layers. Moreover, big companies are not interested in games that are not blockbusters because they don't attract attention. So we only get AAA titles that keep getting bigger and bigger.
Why is Arkane so special to me?
What hits me especially hard is the closing of Arkane Austin. After all, it is the team behind one of my favorite games of all time: Dishonored. An excellent stealth game in a special world that I still think about from time to time. The mysterious atmosphere it got from not conclusively answering many questions was also delightful.
Arkane Austin's most recent game was Redfall. A huge flop, as the game was released in a very poor state. It is also the first game they made under Microsoft, which is very noticeable. Of course, it is hard to say where the blame lay, but it is clear that it was not a game they wanted to make.
It is also quite a shame, because the studio had long proven that they can make good games. After all, in addition to Dishonored, they also made Prey (2017). Both are excellent games that do interesting things with players' choices. Such projects may be a bit niche, but they will be sorely missed among gamers.
Arkane is not completely dead. In fact, it had two locations: Austin and Lyon. Deathloop was developed in France. Some of the employees there can continue working on Marvel's Blade. Still, a large portion will also be laid off. And to say I get excited about a superhero game when my interest in the Marvel movies is also minimal.....
Rigged from the beginning
It is actually up to Microsoft to make sure that even the small studios among them have a chance to develop their projects and release varied games. But that's not what the giant wants. Microsoft is only interested in AAA titles so they can run competitor Sony into the ground.
It almost feels like they were looking for reasons to close the studios. Look at Tango Gameworks, for example. They released Hi-Fi Rush last year. The game was not announced anywhere and even on release, hardly anything about it was communicated by Microsoft. In addition, it went straight into Game Pass, which meant even fewer people were going to buy it. It's available for free, so why spend money on it? Then Microsoft announced that the sales figures were disappointing.
But Hi-Fi Rush found some success despite all this. Good reviews and enthausiastic players were enough for the game to still spread some. This despite the fact that Microsoft seems to be intentionally working against it. Sure, it doesn't have the big sales figures of an Elder Scrolls or Fallout game, but the production costs are also much lower. And much more importantly for the gamer: it also provides variety. After all, we don't want all games to be the same, do we?
Tango Gameworks also had a flop with GhostWire: Tokyo. The numbers have since gone up somewhat, but from what I've heard the game is only "okay. On the other hand, before that they made The Evil Within 1 and 2, two games that really did get played by horror enthusiasts. Still, the studio has to close and many of the developers are laid off.
Layoffs in the thousands
It is hard not to become cinical of these events. In 2022, about 8,500 developers were laid off. In 2023, over 10,000 developers had to find new positions. The estimate for this year is also around 9,500. Of course, these cuts are not just in video games; there are a lot of industries that are suffering right now. But it is shocking.
Technology is getting more and more expensive, so making games costs more and more. The bigwigs only want to make blockbusters with guaranteed success, while they themselves know nothing at all about games. Then developers get fired, so the people at the top can keep pennies in their pockets.
If you think that doesn't affect indie developers, you are sadly mistaken. The whole industry is suffering, and small studios are less able to absorb the blows than a giant like Microsoft. That just doesn't make the news, because an outlet isn't going to write about a studio no one has heard of.
The focus is moving more and more toward guaranteed and constant money. So work is only being done on giant open worlds, preferably as part of a well-known series. Or at least with a well-known studio like Bethesda behind it. That, or there is an unhealthy focus on microtransactions. Because then we'll keep spending our pennies on them. Preferably, publishers have both. What developers want to make, and what gamers want to play, matters less and less.
What can you do?
What can we, as gamers, do about this? There's not much more than voting with your wallet, unfortunately. Stay away from preorders, and do you really need the latest FIFA every year? Instead, give projects from smaller developers a little more attention. Because if they don't, Microsoft will find a reason to shut them down. That's a shame. Besides, their games are just as good, or even better. What about me? I try to bring topics like this to your attention. Hopefully it will make a bit of a difference again.
Do you have thoughts on the game industry as it is now? If so, be sure to let us know in the comments!
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