Age of Empires developers laid off!
A wave of layoffs at Microsoft has hit World's Edge, the studio behind the Age of Empires series. The company let go of nearly half of the team and scrapped its latest game. Some employees learned they had lost their jobs while on vacation.
Painful cuts at World's Edge: the Age of Empires studio loses nearly half its staff
On Monday, Microsoft announced that World's Edge would be moved under Activision. At first it wasn't clear what this meant for employees, but the answer came very quickly. As part of another round of layoffs, 268 people lost their jobs within Xbox's structures. This is part of a much broader plan to eliminate 3,200 positions in the current fiscal year.
For the team responsible for Age of Empires, it was a real blow. In recent days, former employees have begun publicly describing their situation on social media. Their posts indicate that around 50 percent of the studio has been let go, and its next project has been definitively cancelled.
Layoffs during vacation
Adam Isgreen, a former creative director who spent 16 years at the company, said he was disappointed by this ending to his time with World's Edge and the Age brand, both on his own behalf and on behalf of the many talented colleagues affected by the layoffs. He added that the team had great plans for the future and expressed hope that those who remain will rise to the challenge.
The news was also confirmed by Andrew Martz, a former senior software engineer. He explained that the studio had been reorganized to move into Activision's structures, and as a result another project was cancelled and a significant portion of the team received termination notices, including himself.
The story of Greg Snook, a former principal software engineer, is particularly moving. The news of his layoff reached him while he was on vacation and, as he admitted, it wasn't the kind of news he was expecting. His last day of building access fell exactly on the 25th anniversary of his employment at the company.
What's next for Age of Empires?
The future of World's Edge under Activision, as well as the series itself, is now uncertain. The studio oversaw the development of the franchise but relied largely on collaboration with external teams. One example is Relic Entertainment, the lead developer of Age of Empires IV, which debuted on PC in 2021 and later came to Xbox and PlayStation consoles as well.
Will we see Age of Empires V? It seems inevitable, although after the Activision takeover, the remaining employees may be reassigned to entirely different tasks. Since the new parent company manages Xbox's main shooters, perhaps a strategy game set in the Halo universe is in the works? Time will tell.
Fans can take some comfort in fresh releases. On Tuesday, the Viking Sagas expansion for Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition was released, introducing three new civilizations, 15 single-player campaign scenarios, and a number of improvements.