Re: One Launcher to Rule Them All

On Fri, 04 Jul 2025 10:28:25 -0400, Spalls Hurgenson
<spallshurgenson@gmail.com> wrote:

On a vaguely related note, things aren't going to so well in XBox HQ,
with lots of layoffs (9000+ people) in the various gaming divisions.

As a side-note to this side-note:

These mass-layoffs have reportedly cored Turn 10 Studios, which is the
team behind the Forza games.* Reportedly there are only a handful of
employees left in support positions for Horizon 5, released just a
couple of years ago. The Forza games have been a hallmark of Microsoft
gaming since the first XBox, so seeing the team gutted speaks volumes
about what's going on at Microsoft. It's as if Activision just fired
all of its Call of Duty developers, or Blizzard just canned the "World
of Warcraft" team.

But gaming might have some rocky years ahead, especially with regards
to companies heavily dependent on US sales. Signs are showing a
slow-down in video game spending, especially amongst the younger
set,** thanks to the (self-inflicted) economic woes headed toward that
country. Microsoft may be re-evaluating what its most important
services are, and it could be that PC (and console) games aren't very
high on that list.

It's a shame that one company has such a huge impact on the industry
as a whole. Who could have guess that having a near monopoly
--especially Microsoft-- might have disadvantages? If only somebody
had put a stop to its recent mergers and acquistions, its struggles
might not have such widespread effect...







* Forza is gone
https://www.gamesindustry.biz/video-games-spending-by-young-americans-is-dropping-sharply-report-suggests
** spending is down
https://www.gamesindustry.biz/video-games-spending-by-young-americans-is-dropping-sharply-report-suggests