Microsoft has announced another Xbox restructuring, cutting 268 jobs and reorganizing several of its first-party studios. Obsidian will move under Bethesda, Activision will make the next Halo game, Playground Games and Turn 10 are merging, and Ninja Theory could close after two proposed deals fell through.
Xbox Chief Content Officer Matt Booty laid out the changes in a memo on Xbox Wire. He said the steps taken since July, including divesting studios, have completed about three-quarters of the restructuring Xbox announced earlier.
The layoffs hit Halo Studios, other first-party teams, and Xbox Game Studios management and central functions.
Xbox Is Consolidating Its Studios
Microsoft says it wants to run fewer business units and group together teams that already work closely with one another. The new structure looks like this:
| Studio / Group | Change |
| Obsidian | Moves under Bethesda while continuing its existing projects, including Grounded and a new Fallout project developed with Bethesda Game Studios |
| Activision | Expands to include World's Edge and Rare, and will create the next Halo game through a new dedicated team |
| Halo Studios | A smaller team will continue supporting the Halo community and existing games |
| Playground Games + Turn 10 | Merge into one studio focused on the Forza and Fable franchises |
| King | Expands to include Microsoft Casual Games |
The Obsidian move comes with some Fallout news: the studio is now officially working on a new Fallout project with Bethesda Game Studios. Microsoft didn't say whether that project is Fallout 5 or a separate entry in the series.
Activision will Develop the Next Halo
Activision is getting a bigger role inside Xbox. It will take over World's Edge and Rare, and a newly created Activision team will lead development of the next Halo game.
Booty said that team will work separately from ongoing Call of Duty development. Halo Studios will stay open with a smaller group that supports existing Halo releases and the community.
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