I’m anXboxfan first and foremost, but lately, it’s becoming increasingly difficult to stay a fan. 2024 was already a pretty bad year for Xbox, shutting down Arkane Austin and Tango Gameworks, but at least they backpedaled somewhat, lettingKrafton acquire Tango, so those amazing devs aren’t out of a job. The same cannot be said for 2025.
Not only haveMicrosoft laid off thousands of employees, but they’ve also canceled numerousgames, both internally at Microsoft Gaming and titles that they were publishing or funding directly. The latter, however, isn’t completely canceled, as the developers are still seeking a new publisher and additional funding. However, these decisions will likely result in more job cuts, and it’s unfortunate how heartless Microsoft seems to be.
Xbox’s Game Cancellations Have Gone Too Far
These Cancellations Are Devastating
The biggest Xbox game cancellation was thePerfect Darkreboot. Developed by The Initiative, with support from Crystal Dynamics, this newPerfect Darkseemed to be an immersive sim in the style ofDeus Ex, judging by the incredible 2024 gameplay reveal. It seemed to be just a couple of years away, especially because this was The Initiative’s sole project since they first formed in 2018.
However,Xbox canceled it in 2025. What makes this even worse is that developers have been working on this game probably since the team’s inception in 2018, and now havevirtually nothing to show for itwhen applying for new positions. It reminds me of why many developers left duringDuke Nukem Forever’sdevelopment, because they just had nothing on their resume since the game wouldn’t release until 2011.
Then, there was the cancellation of Rare’sEverwild. Thankfully, Rare stillappears to be in a strong position with the successful live-servicegame Sea of Thieves, but the cancellation did result in thedeparture of a few veteran staff members, including Gregg Mayles. Looking back at Tango Gameworks and Sony Japan Studio,it’s usually not a good thingwhen veteran staff members leave.
First-party studios weren’t alone in the game cancellation department. Romero Games, led by FPS and video game legend John Romero, had its AAA Unreal Engine 5 FPS title funding pulled reportedly by Microsoft, according toIGN. This led to more layoffs, and potentially the entire studio being shut down, but thankfully,that isn’t the case for now.
The latest cancellation wasContrabandby Avalanche Studios. Once again, it appears that Xbox’s publishing deal and funding have been cut, as indicated byAvalanche Studios’official response, and they’re evaluating the project’s future. I wouldn’t be surprised ifthis led to more layoffs, consideringContrabandis the only upcoming game listed on the developer’s official website.
Perhaps they have more unannounced games planned, but it’s not a good look to have your only upcoming game halted like this. What happened to Xbox cancellations likeScalebound? PlatinumGames already had many titles in development at the time of the cancellation,includingNier: AutomataandAstral Chain, so they weren’t going to be too financially hurt.
Romero Games and Avalanche, however, don’t seem to have other projects in active development right now, which means these cancellationscould be devastating to those studios. Why can’t Xbox cancel projects that won’t lead to such major financial troubles, like they did withScalebound?
Why Can’t Xbox Treat Their Developers As Good As Their Customers
A Terrible Shame
Microsoft’s recent decisions are decimating lives, which is unfortunate, because the reason why I prefer Xbox to PlayStation and Nintendo is that they are by far themost consumer-friendly of the three. Xbox is the first platform I felt comfortable with a digital game library.
Back in 2017, when original Xbox games became backward compatible on Xbox One, I was fully prepared to purchaseNinja Gaiden Blackon the Xbox Store. However, I was shocked to see it already in my digital library. I then realized that I had repurchased the game on theold Xbox 360 Marketplace, even though I never finished installing it, because my internet was subpar at the time. This felt awesome.
Nintendo wouldn’t do this, and at the time, neither would PlayStation. Xbox’s commitment to its digital game purchases across all systems made me confident in a digital library of games, something that only really exists on PC for me. To boot, whenForza Horizon 4was about to be delisted, Xbox gave awayfree copies to Game Pass players who bought the DLC content.
That’s incredible, and once again, something that Nintendo and PlayStation would never do. It’s a shame that the developers aren’t given the same generosity. With these recent decisions, it seemsthat no studio/game project is off-limits to layoffs or cancellation, and it’s challenging to remain anXboxfan given the company’s apparentlack of care for its talent and partners.
