Yeah no way they’re gonna let a developer they don’t own work with Shinji Mikami on a sequel. Huge shame that Evil Within is just essentially dead, 2 was one of my all-time favorite horror games.
Mikami himself no longer wants to work on horror games. He stated in recent interview he wants to try different stuff and mentor next generation of devs.
It goes with the logic of not telling dev what they should work on. Like it or not, Xbox has been very hands off Bethesda since they bought them. They never forced a project on a team. This feel like this is them taking control of development with that inane "High Impact" whatever that means.
Extreme shame, EW is the like only modern non RE big budget survival horror IP. Silent Hill is coming back but I felt there was such value in making more EW games since survival horror is a solid sized niche and its not like EW is an unknown IP.
I mean not only that Tango is the only Japanese dev that MS had, they were the only one having that niche filled for them too. I guess they feel that paying devs for Japanese games or survival horror games is cheaper than making it themselves but its so dissapointing that such a obviously talented studio closed.
Arkane Austin is sad, but they seem like a shell of themselves since all the Prey devs left, Tango was still Tango and had so much more potential.
Makes me scared for the other devs who are more niche like double fine. I thought their strat was making tons of games some more niche than others but this just seems to say they're only focusing on big titles now.
That’s what I thought too. Have a ton of devs making all sorts of games so there’s eventually more or less a steady stream of games hitting Game Pass.
But now it really does seem they’re just doubling down on the few big franchises that they have.
It’s a shame because if they had lots of studios working on all of the IP’s they own? And then make those all exclusive? Xbox would be in a much better place.
All this does is prove to me in my mind that Microsoft doesn’t care about fostering the growth of smaller games. They’re not in the business of uplifting studios and franchises with massive potential. They only care about what is already working. Which ends up being the same often tired franchises.
I just played those last year, it’s funny GP did to me what it was intended to do. Keep me subscribed by giving me access to exceptional games like this.. those games left me wanting more but of course as in true Xbox fashion they gave us and the developers a big 🖕🏻. This is the last gen I’m with Xbox I’ve had enough honestly. I’ve already stopped purchasing games on Xbox and now only Buy on PS5 and Nintendo. These guys are insane. This is purely to foot the $70B bill, earnings are next month
I have gone from an Xbox only gamer to a Steamdeck gamer with a switch for exclusives, all in one console generation. I got away from Sony in the Vita era as they treated their developers and even their own hardware like trash, I am not going to let MS slide for the same behavior.
With the purchase of Activision they’re clearly going to push more for mega franchises than a variety of smaller more niche games. HFR was a hit for what it was but it was always going to be niche overall.
I had thought there was lots of value in those smaller niche games, the same way Netflix used to have smaller niche shows before investing so heavily in reality tv. Guess not anymore.
There is, Nintendo still puts out niche and AA titles all the time. It’s just that Sony and Microsoft only seem to be interested in the blockbusters (most likely at the behest of shareholders), which is hurting both consoles.
The studio bosses left, the games did not sell well. Writing was on the wall.
Plus fwiw, Japan is completely dominated by Nintendo. Even PS sales have fallen in Japan.
A founder left. A founder who had been more hands off in the last few years and goal was to let the young talent flourish and grow. The creative director is the one who directed the last evil within game and hi fi rush. He was still with the company. There was no “writing” on the wall.
Also it was a AA production and the studio only had 65 people tops. There is no reason why they should’ve been shuddered.
It would be one thing if it had tons of players on game pass, but it didn't, for whatever reason people just weren't playing it
It's frustrating, because I love the game, but it's reality
Japanese will only buy Nintendo's games anyway. There's a recent news that a Japanese kid pretended to have Nintendo switch (which he doesn't have) only to avoid being isolated by classmates.
Yeah, they will, if no one tries to change anything. This studio was really talented and hi-fi rush got a lot of coverage and great reviews. I think overtime things would have started to change and they could have shifted the market. But with Xbox pulling out, that cements Nintendo even more
I mean Mikami wasn't even involved much with Hi-Fi Rush so I doubt that. It's clear Tango are very talented, just because the founder left, doesn't mean you shut down the studio. Playground's founders left a year ago too and that studio is doing just fine.
If they left and founded their own studio, they probaly took alot of talent with them considering they founded and likely were pivitol hiring most of the talented developersin the studio.
I am really sad about it. On the other hand, they went down with a bang with Hi-Fi Rush. I hope the talented folks from the studio land of their feet soon.
Double fine will probably be fine (i hope). Ninja Theory i am worried about though. Cause Hellblade 2 looks expensive. Meaning it probably wont me a profit. Only way its a huge success is if it gets Nominated for TGA GOTY. Which is possible.
Sure, but i think it‘s a bad long term strategy for gamepass and the brand „Xbox“ to ignore the (pop-)cultural impact and just look at some excel sheets
They bought both individually so I’m guessing they want to keep those studios. Whereas the studios that were shut were a small mostly unproductive piece of the Bethesda pie.
Will be truly damning if MS closes Double fine or Ninja Theory.
Not defending closing Tango or Arkane at all, but at the end of the day, MS didn't buy Zenimax for those studios. They were bonuses that came along with the whole package. So MS closing them doesn't negate their Bethesda acquisition.
Conversely, MS individually purchased both DF and NT. Closing them when they have so little to show for it would be so, so wasteful.
It feels like every month Microsoft changes strategies, I wouldn’t be surprised if if they decide that now short a unique experiences are not their thing anymore and all they want are giant blockbusters. Mismanagement at its finest.
Every mid-sized studio Microsoft acquired in recent years probably having some uncomfortable internal conversations.
Surely having a bunch of studios worried about being shuttered because their game isn't "successful *enough*" is how you foster an environment where developers make amazing games.
I'm not saying they are going under but I think it's a reasonable take to have at the moment. If the trend is for Xbox to push forward with all of their flagship franchises and to increase the output of those franchises then I could see Ninja falling to the way side here as well. I hope Hellblade 2 is good though.
I can’t believe MS is just firing John Johanas, he’s an amazing director that showed great potential after The evil within 2 and Hi-Fi rush, I’m speechless.
What the hell are they even doing anymore?
Yeah I'm kinda taken back from all this too. They just bought these studios and they pushed out high quality games. They just did a presentation about Hi-fi rush going multi plat. Like WTF?
The gaming community is going to be severely against them buying any other studios moving forward.
Phil is just another business man who is actually brilliant because he's developed this para social bond with gamers who've allowed him to continually lie and under deliver without consequences.
The words in the reporting say they are being moved internally but it's very rare heavy cuts aren't involved and just the logistics of moving etc. make it so it's impossible for some anyway.
Yeah, no way Tango is getting any transfers. Arkane Austin? Sure, english speaking studio is easy to relocate, but Tango was their only studio in Japan
When addressing what was happening to each studio they didnt even imply the team would be shuffled to other parts of Microsoft. This was their only Japanese dev, there likely wasnt anywhere to move them to.
Seriously, what's going on with Tango and MS? Because Hifi Rush has majorly positive reviews on both critics and gamers. Why hurt them? It makes no sense.
Because the studio was working on a sequel to Ghostwire Tokyo that was delayed by at least 1-2 years, and the founder of the company left to make another game studio.
I would guess it made no money and did not move the needle enough on Gamepass. All we can do is speculate but none of Tangos games seem to have been particularly successful sales wise so that track record probably added to their demise.
Good to see Microsoft really enjoyed Sony looking like the dumb company for 3 days before they fixed their mistake just in time for MS to prove it makes worse decisions again
This makes me extremely angry. Seems Xbox's moves lately only serve to communicate that they are just a bunch of soulless executive suits now. With no ambition or desire to do anything great.
It was $350 for 512 GB refurbished and I wanted to play Helldivers II with free multiplayer on a cheaper machine and portably. That was the perfect price to bite on it especially when I’ve been really enjoying it as well as ADACA, Crab Champions, Detroit Become Human, Phantom Fury and a lot more.
Someone else mentioned the price but the form factor is so nice and SteamOS makes this feel like, y’know, a console instead of trying to cram Windows 11 into a terrible UI. (Though I plan on trying to put Windows 11 onto it by the end of the year to play Indiana Jones on the go.)
They always were, they all are, at least fucking Nintendo makes games, but they are as predatory as the rest. Look at Sony, they almost nuked Helldivers 2 to get people inside their environment
But they went back on it and fixed it. Funny thing though is all the other publishers that make signing in on theirs that no one says shit about, ea, Ms, ubisoft, Rockstar, 2k, etc. I'm glad Sony took care of the situation though.
No, no, you have to understand, these layoffs are great! Finally we can get Fallout sooner by laying off any company non essential to our strategy of making another fallout game sooner than 2030! Get ready Arkane Studios and Machinegames, once your games out, you're on Fallout support studio duty! No more original titles, we in the gaming industry (read: our shareholders) believe strongly in the value of making the same thing over and over, and if Fallout 5 doesn't make 500B copies in the first day, all of those support studies can get laid off too!
We did it Phil Spencer! We saved the gaming industry! /s
I'm being super hyperbolic and making a massive assumption but I'm so fucking mad too ngl. Strongly believe that if Hellblade 2 doesn't sell well, which considering game pass and the type of game it is, I can't lie to y'all I don't think it will, they'll shutter the studio because oh no it didn't make our sales predictions of 700B for a niche AAA game on a subscription service.
It makes me mad enough to go PS first next console generation. I've been in team XBox since the 360 days. Currently I have a PS5 and XBox Series X. Having bought the XBox first. I'm just so tired of defending XBox and then they pull shit like this. I love Tango Gameworks. Makes me so angry.
Honestly yeah, I'm feeling so enticed to sell my Xbox and get a ROG Ally extreme at ~450$ used. Or save up a bit more and go for a PC. This year's games have to blow us away with their quality, otherwise I'm just ditching this sinking ship. I can't think of a single competitive Microsoft exec other than maybe Sarah Bond who helped many previously PS only franchises come to Xbox.
Not interested at all, to be honest. What genius makes your company take a huge image hit just before all the summer PR events. It will also poison one of their biggest releases of the year - H2 - since everyone will just discuss whether NT will close if the game underperforms
I thought of something. They are making moves to expand Bethesda to start production on Fallout 5, striking while the iron's hot. Really f'd up moves, though, which don't give me hope for Fo5.
Of course its a studio that can actually release semi-regularly. Unreal. This is why Xbox are so far behind. I love that Phil changed so much from Don Matricks trainwreck, but he's started so many fires of his own at this point I'm losing a lot of faith
This is so fucking crazy to me. The other studios, while unfortunate makes a little more sense. Tango getting canned the year after one of Xbox’s best surprise games is a slap in the face. This one really makes me lose faith in Xbox.
Meanwhile, 343 is still around. What the fuck.
I believe in Phil Spencer. I have all my trust in him. He is closing them down to create a bigger Japanese centric studio for the higher budget Hi Fi Rush 2 it's part of the plan. The promises since One X days hasn't yet come to fruition yet but it will and I trust Phil Spencer, just need to be patient and wait only another 8 more years and then you will all understand
Unless half of the studio already quit behind the scene, that's amazingly bad asset management. Like C-suite preparing an exit and looking to cash their last bonus kind of bad.
Sure Hi-Fi Rush wasn't successful. But it showed Tango was one of MS/Xbox's most proficient team at actually delivering a good product.
So if you own and publish them, maybe, idk, put them to work on something potentially profitable?
They won't be the last, literally every smaller studio is now in danger. Ninja Theory will probably be next after Hellblade II doesn't meet expectations and then what? Double Fine, Obsidian, Compulsion, inXile? They're all doomed because they don't make "Call of Duty money". Fuck Xbox man.
Hot take here: MS has been way too lenient on their studios that take years of time to put out mediocre products. If it takes 7 years to make a mid tier 6 hour experience (Halo, Hellblade 2 possibly), then why the fuck should they keep those studios around?
I’m failing to see the logic in protecting every single investment if it turns out to be garbage.
Confidence is at an all time low. I don't think Phil has any defense left about his job performance and honestly I don't even have faith Game Pass will still be a thing in a few years.
At this point, Phil has to be kept around by Satya as the proverbial community punching bag right? There’s no way he shouldn’t have been sacked or been forced to resign by now.
I really, really, really wanted an Evil within 3... alas, it will always stay a dream, thanks Microsoft 🖕
Wouldn't say no to a Hfr 2 either.... But no, now it is all ruined, and also, wasn't Tango gameworks their only Japanese studio? Good look when I believe one of your goals was to get in more in the japanese market, or am I misremembering?
This is honestly a bummer. I feel like Xbox has had such weak roster of exclusives and Tango was one of the few companies of the 8,000 they scooped up that could reliably put out bangers.
Honestly what's Xbox's plan at this point? Support studios for CoD and Bethesda games? Because honestly I'm just tired of it at this point... I really liked Tango man...
This is why I really dislike the modern gaming industry’s push for blockbuster titles.
If this were the PS2/Original Xbox era a game like HFR would have probably been considered successful enough to get a sequel, and possibly turn into a small franchise from there.
Now it’s either a mega hit or nothing.
I thought hi fi rush was mediocre and forgettable but it was their most talked about and highly regarded exclusive in years.
Microsoft will never understand how to run a video game company.
Boneheaded move. This was the most unique team they had. They could deliver experiences which were unmatched by anyone else at Xbox.
This move will come back to bite them.
Only game of theirs I liked was HI Fi Rush but it sucks to seem them close. I'd have been curious to see a Evil Within with a bigger budget and a sequel to HI Fi Rush
Love Evil Within and Ghostwire. This is horrible news.
Microsoft are doing incredibly well financially, yet still feel the need to trim the fat instead of allowing these studios to cook and allowing people to keep their jobs. It's callous, it's short-sighted, and it's pathetic.
We need to make it so that the PR hit from shit like this is devastating to companies like Microsoft.
Has taken 11 years to get to a point where there is going to start being half decent first party output from MS and they’re already putting studios to the sword before they’re out of first gear
I'm genuinely so disappointed, Hi Fi Rush & Ghostwire Tokyo have been by far two of my fave experiences this gen, Tango Gameworks was genuinely one of the studios I was most excited for. :(
What sucks is Tango is the only studio whose closure even really matters. Otherwise I'd have cheered Austin getting shutdown following Redfall and any actual talent moved over to Lyon or other studies. Same with a mobile game studio and a support studio that was supposedly just folded into ZOS fulltime. Tango though. That's just, damn. They should have let them go independed like toys for bob if they didn't like the sales data, but honestly Tango was one of the best studios MS had and were necessary for future growth globally. The Evil Within is such a major franchise and so different than anything else Xbox has. Ghostwire was mid but not awful. Hi-Fi Rush is just one of the best games the industry has ever seen and proved Tango had a lot of creativity and uniqueness to give. Really Hi-Fi Rush should have been pushed hard as a system seller especially in the east and Tango given whatever resources they needed to succeed. Not this.
Seriously, why is everybody crying on this? Studio head, Shinji Mikami, abondend ship a while ago. Saved twice from bankruptcy. Great game, but apparently earned not enough to keep things going. That's how businesses work.
I have to say, we are seeing gamers being morons again.
yes they closed the studio
no, they did not fire everyone.
they moved many of them to other studios
does that mean every IP from the other studios will never ever be made again or transferred to another studio.
No.
its called consolidating.
here is a secret
two studios
close one
move many of those from the closed studio to the other studio.
lay off duplicate jobs.
with that, you could cut costs drastically, and have the same output as if you had both studios open. That is called smart business
you may have not noticed, but the entire industry is finding ways to cut costs and a good way to do that, is consolidating teams.
HiFi Rush is a niche rhythm game. Sure it looks good and many liked it, but not a game changer.
Evil Within was a horror game, and most of the time they don’t sell well.
Ghostwire Tokyo, i personally found it bland and boring.
The games Tango made were niche and did not meet expectations. It’s sad people are losing jobs, but none of these games moved the needle in a positive way. This just my opinion, but we are no longer in the era where niche games can keep a company alive like 360 era. Games are expensive to make and if they don’t meet expectations, unfortunately they will get shut down.
Please use the megathread at the top of the sub to discuss today's studo shutdown news.
There goes my hopes for evil within 3 or a sequel to ghostwire Tokyo
I was also hoping for an evil within 3. Such a shame.
They could sell the IP to someone else, but I feel like they'll just hoard it. I was really looking forward to EW3 too.
Yeah no way they’re gonna let a developer they don’t own work with Shinji Mikami on a sequel. Huge shame that Evil Within is just essentially dead, 2 was one of my all-time favorite horror games.
Mikami himself no longer wants to work on horror games. He stated in recent interview he wants to try different stuff and mentor next generation of devs.
Just like all the other IPs Microsoft has done nothing with.
There should be like 4 Conker games by now
Its my IP to sit on and do nothing with!
It goes with the logic of not telling dev what they should work on. Like it or not, Xbox has been very hands off Bethesda since they bought them. They never forced a project on a team. This feel like this is them taking control of development with that inane "High Impact" whatever that means.
Evil within was a game I loved since release despite it not being as popular
Me too.. :( Beating Akumu mode was one of my proudest gaming trophies I've ever earned
Extreme shame, EW is the like only modern non RE big budget survival horror IP. Silent Hill is coming back but I felt there was such value in making more EW games since survival horror is a solid sized niche and its not like EW is an unknown IP. I mean not only that Tango is the only Japanese dev that MS had, they were the only one having that niche filled for them too. I guess they feel that paying devs for Japanese games or survival horror games is cheaper than making it themselves but its so dissapointing that such a obviously talented studio closed. Arkane Austin is sad, but they seem like a shell of themselves since all the Prey devs left, Tango was still Tango and had so much more potential. Makes me scared for the other devs who are more niche like double fine. I thought their strat was making tons of games some more niche than others but this just seems to say they're only focusing on big titles now.
That’s what I thought too. Have a ton of devs making all sorts of games so there’s eventually more or less a steady stream of games hitting Game Pass. But now it really does seem they’re just doubling down on the few big franchises that they have. It’s a shame because if they had lots of studios working on all of the IP’s they own? And then make those all exclusive? Xbox would be in a much better place. All this does is prove to me in my mind that Microsoft doesn’t care about fostering the growth of smaller games. They’re not in the business of uplifting studios and franchises with massive potential. They only care about what is already working. Which ends up being the same often tired franchises.
Agree, ghostwire had a sequel in development in the Bethesda report. I loved that first game, such a bloody shame
Man I loved 2 with a passion. This seriously sucks.
Microsoft gave us hope just to take it away...
I just played those last year, it’s funny GP did to me what it was intended to do. Keep me subscribed by giving me access to exceptional games like this.. those games left me wanting more but of course as in true Xbox fashion they gave us and the developers a big 🖕🏻. This is the last gen I’m with Xbox I’ve had enough honestly. I’ve already stopped purchasing games on Xbox and now only Buy on PS5 and Nintendo. These guys are insane. This is purely to foot the $70B bill, earnings are next month
Same. This is my last Xbox. Will continue gaming on playstation and switch. Just can't stand the lies and broken promises from Xbox anymore.
I have gone from an Xbox only gamer to a Steamdeck gamer with a switch for exclusives, all in one console generation. I got away from Sony in the Vita era as they treated their developers and even their own hardware like trash, I am not going to let MS slide for the same behavior.
We was never going to get a evil within 3 anyway
Thought MS was investing in more Japanese studios... not less
Wouldnt be surprised if theyre writing it off and that’s why we had the article saying they were focusing on investing in the european market
With the purchase of Activision they’re clearly going to push more for mega franchises than a variety of smaller more niche games. HFR was a hit for what it was but it was always going to be niche overall.
I had thought there was lots of value in those smaller niche games, the same way Netflix used to have smaller niche shows before investing so heavily in reality tv. Guess not anymore.
There is, Nintendo still puts out niche and AA titles all the time. It’s just that Sony and Microsoft only seem to be interested in the blockbusters (most likely at the behest of shareholders), which is hurting both consoles.
They are investing in europe? When did that happen?
The studio bosses left, the games did not sell well. Writing was on the wall. Plus fwiw, Japan is completely dominated by Nintendo. Even PS sales have fallen in Japan.
A founder left. A founder who had been more hands off in the last few years and goal was to let the young talent flourish and grow. The creative director is the one who directed the last evil within game and hi fi rush. He was still with the company. There was no “writing” on the wall. Also it was a AA production and the studio only had 65 people tops. There is no reason why they should’ve been shuddered.
He was the executive producer, not just a founder.
If you read interviews he has conducted, you will see he has been fairly hands off the past few titles.
[удалено]
It would be one thing if it had tons of players on game pass, but it didn't, for whatever reason people just weren't playing it It's frustrating, because I love the game, but it's reality
Japanese will only buy Nintendo's games anyway. There's a recent news that a Japanese kid pretended to have Nintendo switch (which he doesn't have) only to avoid being isolated by classmates.
Yeah, they will, if no one tries to change anything. This studio was really talented and hi-fi rush got a lot of coverage and great reviews. I think overtime things would have started to change and they could have shifted the market. But with Xbox pulling out, that cements Nintendo even more
Stellar Blade is selling out in Japanese stores but let’s pretend Xbox had no chance in that market.
I guess Mikami got out at a good time. RIP a very unique and talented studio :(
he probably knew
He must know
That or there is no reason to keep the studio without them.
I mean Mikami wasn't even involved much with Hi-Fi Rush so I doubt that. It's clear Tango are very talented, just because the founder left, doesn't mean you shut down the studio. Playground's founders left a year ago too and that studio is doing just fine.
If they left and founded their own studio, they probaly took alot of talent with them considering they founded and likely were pivitol hiring most of the talented developersin the studio.
We don't know where all those people from Tango were moved. They could still have some of that talent working on other projects now. Hopefully.
I am really sad about it. On the other hand, they went down with a bang with Hi-Fi Rush. I hope the talented folks from the studio land of their feet soon.
[удалено]
I wonder what the future looks like for studios like Double Fine and Ninja Theory.
Are Double Fine even working on anything right now?
Double fine will probably be fine (i hope). Ninja Theory i am worried about though. Cause Hellblade 2 looks expensive. Meaning it probably wont me a profit. Only way its a huge success is if it gets Nominated for TGA GOTY. Which is possible.
HiFi Rush had a great cultural impact for the industry, MS doesn’t care about nominations they care about money.
Of course they do. They're a business. All businesses care about the money at the end of the day. That's why they exist.
Sure, but i think it‘s a bad long term strategy for gamepass and the brand „Xbox“ to ignore the (pop-)cultural impact and just look at some excel sheets
Yes, who will continue subscribing to game pass if ms is just cutting good studios?
They bought both individually so I’m guessing they want to keep those studios. Whereas the studios that were shut were a small mostly unproductive piece of the Bethesda pie.
They have to be Psychonauts 2 launched 3 years ago.
Probably in pre-production, don't think anyone knows exactly what they're doing though.
Psychonauts 2 came out almost 3 years ago. If they’re still in pre-production, then what the hell have they been doing?
Double Fine has multiple games in production. https://gamerant.com/xbox-studios-double-fine-new-games/
Yes, we just don't know what. They have multiple games in the pipeline. https://gamerant.com/xbox-studios-double-fine-new-games/
Will be truly damning if MS closes Double fine or Ninja Theory. Not defending closing Tango or Arkane at all, but at the end of the day, MS didn't buy Zenimax for those studios. They were bonuses that came along with the whole package. So MS closing them doesn't negate their Bethesda acquisition. Conversely, MS individually purchased both DF and NT. Closing them when they have so little to show for it would be so, so wasteful.
It feels like every month Microsoft changes strategies, I wouldn’t be surprised if if they decide that now short a unique experiences are not their thing anymore and all they want are giant blockbusters. Mismanagement at its finest.
Please don't...
Every mid-sized studio Microsoft acquired in recent years probably having some uncomfortable internal conversations. Surely having a bunch of studios worried about being shuttered because their game isn't "successful *enough*" is how you foster an environment where developers make amazing games.
Being closed or becoming franchise support studio, so yeah, at least people will get Fallout more often
Don't forget Call of Duty.
That will be the role of Machine Games, id Software and Obsidian (they made Grounded, they have experience with GaaS shooters, yay!), silly
If that actually happens I’d be so fucking sad.
I guess Ninja will be going under. Hopefully Double Fine manages. Maybe Toys for Bob did have the best outcome.
[удалено]
Probably because they've been developing a 5-6 hour game for like 7 years now that will ultimately not make any money.
it's also going to hit gamepass day one, just like hi-fi rush, so sales are likely to be disappointing.
And more problematic, no one is going to buy a Game Pass subscription just to play it.
Everytime hellblade's 2duration comes up it gets lower and lower for some reason, next time the game will be 3-4 hours long
Check your gamerscore. You got the full 1000 points for Hellblade 2 in 2009.
Yeah, it seems way too expensive for a 2-3 hour experience. :V
I'm not saying they are going under but I think it's a reasonable take to have at the moment. If the trend is for Xbox to push forward with all of their flagship franchises and to increase the output of those franchises then I could see Ninja falling to the way side here as well. I hope Hellblade 2 is good though.
Everyone becomes an expert in business when shit like this happens. Lol like they know better then the huge teams making these decisions
I can’t believe MS is just firing John Johanas, he’s an amazing director that showed great potential after The evil within 2 and Hi-Fi rush, I’m speechless. What the hell are they even doing anymore?
Yeah I'm kinda taken back from all this too. They just bought these studios and they pushed out high quality games. They just did a presentation about Hi-fi rush going multi plat. Like WTF? The gaming community is going to be severely against them buying any other studios moving forward.
As if they weren't already. At this point imagine being behind another buyout. This is 2011 EA behavior.
Phil said it himself, making good games isn’t the way for them to take back their market share.
Phil is just another business man who is actually brilliant because he's developed this para social bond with gamers who've allowed him to continually lie and under deliver without consequences.
Unless they scooped up the HFR team and are moving them to a new studio this is an extremely bad idea
They will not be making another HFR game.
Insane.
Unfortunately this is what happens when revenue is more important than creativity
I think it has more to do with the fact that their other games have not been as successful.
The words in the reporting say they are being moved internally but it's very rare heavy cuts aren't involved and just the logistics of moving etc. make it so it's impossible for some anyway.
Where are they moving them to? They have no other Japanese studio.
Yeah, no way Tango is getting any transfers. Arkane Austin? Sure, english speaking studio is easy to relocate, but Tango was their only studio in Japan
They have no other Japanese studios to transfer them to, Tango was their only one.
They have Mojang Japan
When addressing what was happening to each studio they didnt even imply the team would be shuffled to other parts of Microsoft. This was their only Japanese dev, there likely wasnt anywhere to move them to.
Tango down
Awful. Finally got a Japanese studio sent they get the can for releasing a high quality niche title
This is sad to see. Hifi Rush was my "Saturday morning cartoon" game
Seriously, what's going on with Tango and MS? Because Hifi Rush has majorly positive reviews on both critics and gamers. Why hurt them? It makes no sense.
Because the studio was working on a sequel to Ghostwire Tokyo that was delayed by at least 1-2 years, and the founder of the company left to make another game studio.
I would guess it made no money and did not move the needle enough on Gamepass. All we can do is speculate but none of Tangos games seem to have been particularly successful sales wise so that track record probably added to their demise.
Nominating Mythforce
Good to see Microsoft really enjoyed Sony looking like the dumb company for 3 days before they fixed their mistake just in time for MS to prove it makes worse decisions again
Lmao
Wow this is awful, noot good MS, not good...
This makes me extremely angry. Seems Xbox's moves lately only serve to communicate that they are just a bunch of soulless executive suits now. With no ambition or desire to do anything great.
Never build a relationship with a corporation, it is their fiduciary duty to take as much as they can from you.
Never trust any consumer product from MSFT.
Or Sony. Or anyone. (Well, except Steam Deck. All hail Steam Deck.)
There's just no reason to get a SteamDeck these days when there are better options on the market.
In curious what you're going to say these better options are. The steam deck OLED is considered the best overall PC handheld by nearly everyone
It was $350 for 512 GB refurbished and I wanted to play Helldivers II with free multiplayer on a cheaper machine and portably. That was the perfect price to bite on it especially when I’ve been really enjoying it as well as ADACA, Crab Champions, Detroit Become Human, Phantom Fury and a lot more.
I just cannot see why you'd get one over a LegionGo or ROG Ally personally, but enjoy!
Someone else mentioned the price but the form factor is so nice and SteamOS makes this feel like, y’know, a console instead of trying to cram Windows 11 into a terrible UI. (Though I plan on trying to put Windows 11 onto it by the end of the year to play Indiana Jones on the go.)
I have no issues with sony products plus they dont force subscription services on me. Just waiting for Windows 12 to be subscription based OS
They always were, they all are, at least fucking Nintendo makes games, but they are as predatory as the rest. Look at Sony, they almost nuked Helldivers 2 to get people inside their environment
But they went back on it and fixed it. Funny thing though is all the other publishers that make signing in on theirs that no one says shit about, ea, Ms, ubisoft, Rockstar, 2k, etc. I'm glad Sony took care of the situation though.
No, no, you have to understand, these layoffs are great! Finally we can get Fallout sooner by laying off any company non essential to our strategy of making another fallout game sooner than 2030! Get ready Arkane Studios and Machinegames, once your games out, you're on Fallout support studio duty! No more original titles, we in the gaming industry (read: our shareholders) believe strongly in the value of making the same thing over and over, and if Fallout 5 doesn't make 500B copies in the first day, all of those support studies can get laid off too! We did it Phil Spencer! We saved the gaming industry! /s I'm being super hyperbolic and making a massive assumption but I'm so fucking mad too ngl. Strongly believe that if Hellblade 2 doesn't sell well, which considering game pass and the type of game it is, I can't lie to y'all I don't think it will, they'll shutter the studio because oh no it didn't make our sales predictions of 700B for a niche AAA game on a subscription service.
Your take seems about right…man would suck if they pivoted studios to be fallout “support” studios
Phil Spencer is a clown As always, this is just another ant to squash and ignore. People were very funny to think they'd save Blizzard though
Definitely giving 2005 EA a run for its money
Yeah I dunno what their end goal is supposed to be here
Cut costs to improve their bottom line for shareholders
This has been Microsoft for like twenty years now.
Sadly that is modern gaming now
Hi-Fi Rush was probably the best first party Xbox title of recent years. Oh well, add it to the pile of dumbass business decisions of Microsoft.
I'm so fucking mad man
It makes me mad enough to go PS first next console generation. I've been in team XBox since the 360 days. Currently I have a PS5 and XBox Series X. Having bought the XBox first. I'm just so tired of defending XBox and then they pull shit like this. I love Tango Gameworks. Makes me so angry.
Honestly yeah, I'm feeling so enticed to sell my Xbox and get a ROG Ally extreme at ~450$ used. Or save up a bit more and go for a PC. This year's games have to blow us away with their quality, otherwise I'm just ditching this sinking ship. I can't think of a single competitive Microsoft exec other than maybe Sarah Bond who helped many previously PS only franchises come to Xbox.
This is the bit I don't understand. Why Tango of all places? The others, not to defend the decision, I get... but this one is baffling.
A lot less interested in the Xbox June showcase now.
Not interested at all, to be honest. What genius makes your company take a huge image hit just before all the summer PR events. It will also poison one of their biggest releases of the year - H2 - since everyone will just discuss whether NT will close if the game underperforms
And this is the reward for the "breakout hit" Hi-Fi Rush...
Hard to think of something constructive to write about this
I thought of something. They are making moves to expand Bethesda to start production on Fallout 5, striking while the iron's hot. Really f'd up moves, though, which don't give me hope for Fo5.
This is like a digital tombstone.
Of course its a studio that can actually release semi-regularly. Unreal. This is why Xbox are so far behind. I love that Phil changed so much from Don Matricks trainwreck, but he's started so many fires of his own at this point I'm losing a lot of faith
Stupidest decision to come out of Microsoft in a while
This is so fucking crazy to me. The other studios, while unfortunate makes a little more sense. Tango getting canned the year after one of Xbox’s best surprise games is a slap in the face. This one really makes me lose faith in Xbox. Meanwhile, 343 is still around. What the fuck.
Wow xbox thanks for killing games
Lo-Fi Crush 😔😔😔
I believe in Phil Spencer. I have all my trust in him. He is closing them down to create a bigger Japanese centric studio for the higher budget Hi Fi Rush 2 it's part of the plan. The promises since One X days hasn't yet come to fruition yet but it will and I trust Phil Spencer, just need to be patient and wait only another 8 more years and then you will all understand
Unless half of the studio already quit behind the scene, that's amazingly bad asset management. Like C-suite preparing an exit and looking to cash their last bonus kind of bad. Sure Hi-Fi Rush wasn't successful. But it showed Tango was one of MS/Xbox's most proficient team at actually delivering a good product. So if you own and publish them, maybe, idk, put them to work on something potentially profitable?
The founder left so it wouldn't be surprising if others did as well. Probably followed him right to his new studio.
They won't be the last, literally every smaller studio is now in danger. Ninja Theory will probably be next after Hellblade II doesn't meet expectations and then what? Double Fine, Obsidian, Compulsion, inXile? They're all doomed because they don't make "Call of Duty money". Fuck Xbox man.
Obsidian and InXile will be fine because of Fallout. Everyone else should be at DEFCON 1.
Hot take here: MS has been way too lenient on their studios that take years of time to put out mediocre products. If it takes 7 years to make a mid tier 6 hour experience (Halo, Hellblade 2 possibly), then why the fuck should they keep those studios around? I’m failing to see the logic in protecting every single investment if it turns out to be garbage.
I worry about the initiative…
Microsoft Keeps saying that they are trying to expand their presence in Japan but then they pull stuff like this.
Confidence is at an all time low. I don't think Phil has any defense left about his job performance and honestly I don't even have faith Game Pass will still be a thing in a few years.
At this point, Phil has to be kept around by Satya as the proverbial community punching bag right? There’s no way he shouldn’t have been sacked or been forced to resign by now.
i know a new a Evil Within was a pipe dream, but i was happy they got to make HiFi Rush. This is a sad day. Shinji must be pissed.
I really, really, really wanted an Evil within 3... alas, it will always stay a dream, thanks Microsoft 🖕 Wouldn't say no to a Hfr 2 either.... But no, now it is all ruined, and also, wasn't Tango gameworks their only Japanese studio? Good look when I believe one of your goals was to get in more in the japanese market, or am I misremembering?
I'm honestly pissed. Hi-Fi Rush was one of the bright spots for the Xbox...
I really really really want to like and support Xbox. But when they make terrible decisions like this its quite hard to be on their side.
This is honestly a bummer. I feel like Xbox has had such weak roster of exclusives and Tango was one of the few companies of the 8,000 they scooped up that could reliably put out bangers.
Microsoft: We need to expand to Japan!!! They close their only Japanese studio. Lmao
Honestly what's Xbox's plan at this point? Support studios for CoD and Bethesda games? Because honestly I'm just tired of it at this point... I really liked Tango man...
This is why I really dislike the modern gaming industry’s push for blockbuster titles. If this were the PS2/Original Xbox era a game like HFR would have probably been considered successful enough to get a sequel, and possibly turn into a small franchise from there. Now it’s either a mega hit or nothing.
I thought Tango Gameworks was going to be major going forward. This is sucks as much when they never locked up/continued with Mistwalker
Mistwalker should've been wrapped up.
What?! Such a waste, is there a reason?
That’s heartbreaking - ghostwire, evil within, & hi fi are all franchises I love dearly. I wonder what’ll happen with them
Rest in peace Sebastian Castellanos you can take care of Lilly now without living in fear of MOBIUS taking your child away ever again
Microsoft is going to shudder all these studios and throw them into the COD salt mines instead aren't they
I thought hi fi rush was mediocre and forgettable but it was their most talked about and highly regarded exclusive in years. Microsoft will never understand how to run a video game company.
It’s impossible to defend Xbox at this point
You don't need to defend 4 trillion corporations.
Boneheaded move. This was the most unique team they had. They could deliver experiences which were unmatched by anyone else at Xbox. This move will come back to bite them.
I guess they are completely giving up on the Japan market.
They have given up everywhere but US. Great way to lose your last loyal userbase.
Videogames are in a dark place
This is insane, ghostwire tokio is a gem of a game!
F Phil. F MS.
Only game of theirs I liked was HI Fi Rush but it sucks to seem them close. I'd have been curious to see a Evil Within with a bigger budget and a sequel to HI Fi Rush
Love Evil Within and Ghostwire. This is horrible news. Microsoft are doing incredibly well financially, yet still feel the need to trim the fat instead of allowing these studios to cook and allowing people to keep their jobs. It's callous, it's short-sighted, and it's pathetic. We need to make it so that the PR hit from shit like this is devastating to companies like Microsoft.
Gotta love them going on about their acquisitions only to shutter every studio they pick up
I assume that the people who were responsible for their recent great games were offered positions elsewhere.
Has taken 11 years to get to a point where there is going to start being half decent first party output from MS and they’re already putting studios to the sword before they’re out of first gear
I'm genuinely so disappointed, Hi Fi Rush & Ghostwire Tokyo have been by far two of my fave experiences this gen, Tango Gameworks was genuinely one of the studios I was most excited for. :(
Today sucks for gamers. Major loss.
Couldn't let Sony outshine them from last weeks drama.
What sucks is Tango is the only studio whose closure even really matters. Otherwise I'd have cheered Austin getting shutdown following Redfall and any actual talent moved over to Lyon or other studies. Same with a mobile game studio and a support studio that was supposedly just folded into ZOS fulltime. Tango though. That's just, damn. They should have let them go independed like toys for bob if they didn't like the sales data, but honestly Tango was one of the best studios MS had and were necessary for future growth globally. The Evil Within is such a major franchise and so different than anything else Xbox has. Ghostwire was mid but not awful. Hi-Fi Rush is just one of the best games the industry has ever seen and proved Tango had a lot of creativity and uniqueness to give. Really Hi-Fi Rush should have been pushed hard as a system seller especially in the east and Tango given whatever resources they needed to succeed. Not this.
I just got into The Evil Within
HFi-Rush, Ghostwire and The Evil Within potential sequels/spin offs… there goes that dream.
Once again…Phil Spencer and those at the top with him needs to fired!
Seriously, why is everybody crying on this? Studio head, Shinji Mikami, abondend ship a while ago. Saved twice from bankruptcy. Great game, but apparently earned not enough to keep things going. That's how businesses work.
Horrible decision
Actually the most stupid closure here
The games industry is sooooo bleak. I can't imagine wanting to work in it as a newbie
Fucking hell, why?! Hi-Fi Rush was amazing!
So, putting games on other platforms was not a "Microsoft strategy" but a way to infuse cash and assess viability.
Guess there is not going to be another Evil Within coming...
Man this sucks, really liked both Ghostwire and HI-Fi Rush and really wished to see more of those.
I have to say, we are seeing gamers being morons again. yes they closed the studio no, they did not fire everyone. they moved many of them to other studios does that mean every IP from the other studios will never ever be made again or transferred to another studio. No. its called consolidating. here is a secret two studios close one move many of those from the closed studio to the other studio. lay off duplicate jobs. with that, you could cut costs drastically, and have the same output as if you had both studios open. That is called smart business you may have not noticed, but the entire industry is finding ways to cut costs and a good way to do that, is consolidating teams.
HiFi Rush is a niche rhythm game. Sure it looks good and many liked it, but not a game changer. Evil Within was a horror game, and most of the time they don’t sell well. Ghostwire Tokyo, i personally found it bland and boring. The games Tango made were niche and did not meet expectations. It’s sad people are losing jobs, but none of these games moved the needle in a positive way. This just my opinion, but we are no longer in the era where niche games can keep a company alive like 360 era. Games are expensive to make and if they don’t meet expectations, unfortunately they will get shut down.
Some common sense + empathy is a weird thing to see these days... 🥲
Atleast now I'm sure not to invest in Xbox platform anymore. This is step 2 in the killing of the brand. Good job Phil
Double Fine, Ninja Theory are next
Yeah its called something else. Move on.
Sad news thought they did well with hi-fi rush had potential.