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Update []: According to reports from the Texas Workplace Commission, Xbox subsidiary Zenimax (better known as Bethesda) laid off 158 people in the US state this week.
Of those terminations, 96 worked on-site at id Software’s office in Richmond; a further 40 worked for the dev remotely. That means 136 staff were let go from the DOOM maker.
The remaining 22 layoffs were attributed to Bethesda Game Studios’ office in Austin.
Original Story: While it was good to see studios find new owners or retain their independence as part of this week’s Xbox layoffs, it’s important to remember 1,600 jobs were lost yesterday – with a further 1,600 to come over the next year.
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That’s approximately 20% of Microsoft’s gaming division, and it’s inevitably going to hit some studios hard. We’ve already reported on Obsidian losing around 25% of its workforce.
Another dev allegedly stripped to the bone is id Software, which according to 3D Realms founder Scott Miller has lost “most, if not all” of its coders.
Ex-Bethesda Game Studios lead Jeff Gardiner claims the DOOM maker has lost around 95 developers, although that number hasn’t been confirmed by the studio itself. If true, that’s approximately 50% of the team.
Ironically, this is supposed to be a celebratory week for id Software, as it releases DOOM: The Dark Ages’ first major expansion, Revelations. You can read more about that through here.
That’ll obviously still deploy, but exactly what the future holds for the studio is unclear. Various reports and rumours suggest its proprietary id Tech engine has been killed as part of the cuts.
Bethesda, meanwhile, has said it plans to rally around its biggest franchises moving forwards: Fallout, The Elder Scrolls, Wolfenstein, DOOM, and Quake.
It’s unclear who’s going to be left to work on those latter two franchises, though.