Microsoft has made the decision to lay off 1,900 employees from its gaming division, primarily in roles at Activision Blizzard King, but also some at Xbox and ZeniMax Media. This reduction, which represents 8 percent of the Microsoft Gaming workforce, affects a total of 22,000 employees.
The CEO of Microsoft Gaming, in an internal memo obtained by The Verge, said: “We have made the painful decision to reduce the size of our gaming workforce by approximately 1,900 roles out of the 22,000 people on our team.” He added that the leadership team is committed to managing this process as thoughtfully as possible.
In parallel with the layoffs, Blizzard Entertainment president Mike Ybarra and co-founder and design director Allen Adham have announced their decision to leave the company. Ybarra mentioned in a message: “After more than 20 years at Microsoft and with the acquisition of Activision Blizzard behind us, it is time for me to become (once again) the biggest Blizzard fan from the outside.”
In another internal memo, Microsoft President of Game Content and Studios Matt Booty commented on Ybarra and Adham’s departures. Of Ybarra, he said: “Now that he has led the acquisition as president of Blizzard, he has decided to leave the company.” As for Adham, he added: “As one of the co-founders of Blizzard, Allen has had a significant impact on all of Blizzard’s games. His influence will be felt for many years to come as he plans to continue mentoring young designers in the industry.”
Additionally, Blizzard Entertainment’s unannounced survival game has been cancelled. Booty reported that some of the employees who worked on it will be reassigned to other promising projects in Blizzard’s early stages of development.
Fountain: Gematsu
