We've heard all sorts of harrowing reports and snippets of information in regards to the incoming layoff wave about to sweep through Xbox. Some are calling it the "largest single layoff event in gaming history", and we're already seeing some of the other impacts surrounding this cost-cutting measure, not least funding being pulled from IO Interactive's Project Fantasy title.
However, while many reports have long claimed the studios most at risk were Compulsion, Ninja Theory, Double Fine, and most recently Undead Labs, with these developers either set to be sold off or shut down, now another major name is being thrown into the ringer.
The Verge claims that Xbox is weighing up selling off or shutting down Arkane Studios, the last remaining part of the wider Arkane machine following Arkane Austin being closed in 2024.
This decision will likely lead to the cancellation of Marvel's Blade, a game that was announced years ago and has yet to show anything of substance. According to the report, the game's release date recently slipped to late 2027, all while production hasn't been smooth as it's "also running over budget."
It has been mentioned prior that Xbox's huge layoff wave wouldn't happen until Microsoft's new fiscal year, which starts today, so prepare for a huge array of news in the imminent future.
As for Arkane Studios and Marvel's Blade, game director Dinga Bakaba recently took to social media to comment on the announcement of Blade for Marvel Tokon: Fighting Souls, a brief nod that comes amid this turbulence and is a little surprising since he doesn't often talk about the game he's developing on social media. Strange timing, no?
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