[CI Games, Behaviour Interactive, Riot Games, and others were laid off in January, and now it's Microsoft's turn: according to a message from Microsoft Gaming CEO Phil Spencer to employees (via The Verge), 1, 900 According to a message from Microsoft Gaming CEO Phil Spencer to employees (via The Verge), 1, 900 employees will be laid off.

The message reads: "It has been a little over three months since the Activision, Blizzard, and King teams joined Microsoft, and as we head into 2024, the leaders of Microsoft Gaming and Activision Blizzard are committed to building a growing business We are committed to aligning our strategy and execution plans with a sustainable cost structure that supports the overall business." It states.

They highlight "areas of overlap" as the root cause of this decision."

Blizzard President Mike Ibarra also announced his departure, writing on Twitter: "Today is my last day at Blizzard... Blizzard. It has been a true honor to lead through an incredible time and shape the future as part of the team. Having already spent over 20 years at Microsoft, and after the Activision Blizzard acquisition, it's time for me to become (once again) Blizzard's biggest fan from the outside."

Ibarra had previously indicated his intention to stay with the company; according to Bloomberg's Jason Schreier on Twitter, Ibarra said that someone "had to pull [him] out of Blizzard" before he left in November 2023. It is unclear whether he simply changed his mind or whether the layoffs prompted his departure.

The Verge reports that Blizzard co-founder and chief design officer Allen Adham is also leaving the company. Microsoft's Matt Booty said, "As one of Blizzard's co-founders, Allen has had a broad influence on all of Blizzard's games. His influence, both directly and indirectly, will be felt for years to come."

Booty added that "Allen's influence on Blizzard will be felt for many years to come.

Booty also announced to the staff the end of Blizzard's survival game (rumored to be called Odyssey): "Blizzard is ending development of the survival game project and some of the staff working on it, Blizzard will be shifting them to one of several promising new projects that are in the early stages of development."

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The layoffs of approximately 2,000 people represent the dark side of large acquisitions such as this one. Often, massive restructuring takes place. The memo notes "teams from Activision Blizzard, Zenimax, and Xbox," but it is not clear what weight the layoffs represent to Microsoft's overall game developer workforce, along with many developers who worked on Blizzard's survival games, Overwatch, Call of Duty, and Zenimax developers have also said they were laid off.

According to Spencer, the company "will provide full support to those affected during the transition, including severance benefits in accordance with local employment laws."