Xbox Layoffs Reportedly Halve Doom Developer id Software
▼ Summary
– id Software laid off roughly 50 percent of its staff, with one source reporting over 90 redundancies and significant impact on the QA department.
– Former employee Michael Maynard confirmed the 50 percent layoffs in a LinkedIn post, criticizing Microsoft/Xbox for deeming half the team “useless.”
– The layoffs occurred as part of broader Microsoft cuts affecting Xbox, with about 1,600 employees laid off on Monday and up to 3,200 more through June 2027.
– Developers at id Software had unionized in 2024, and union representative Derrick Osobase warned the layoffs would lower game quality and delay releases.
– id cofounder John Romero expressed support for affected staff, noting his own experience with Microsoft’s cost-cutting after his studio’s funding was reportedly canceled.
As part of the sweeping layoffs across Xbox, id Software , the studio behind the iconic Doom franchise , has reportedly cut roughly 50 percent of its workforce, according to a report from Game Developer. One source told the outlet that the reductions amount to more than 90 people. Another source indicated that the studio’s QA department was hit especially hard. The news broke on the same day id released a major expansion for its latest Doom title.
A former employee affected by the cuts, Michael Maynard, confirmed the scale of the layoffs in a LinkedIn post, stating that “roughly” half the company was let go. “We created arguably THE BEST first person engine technology in the industry,” he wrote. “Yet today, Microsoft/XBOX decided half the team was deemed USELESS and needed to be let go; despite all the amazing work and effort from every designer, programmer, artist, audio specialist, level designer, fx, tech design, and on and on and on.”
Xbox has not yet responded to a request for comment. On Monday, Bloomberg reported that ZeniMax , the parent company of id, Bethesda, and other studios , would shift focus toward larger franchises, including Doom, The Elder Scrolls, Fallout, Quake, and Wolfenstein. Bloomberg reporter Jason Schreier noted on Bluesky that id was cutting a “significant number of staff.”
Last year, developers at id Software unionized. In a statement, Derrick Osobase, vice president of CWA District 6, condemned the cuts. “Today’s layoffs decimated the teams at id Software, Bethesda Game Studios, and ZeniMax Online Studios, legendary studios whose employees brought us games like Doom, Quake, Elder Scrolls, and Fallout,” he said. “The layoffs that occurred this week will lower the quality of these iconic games and make them less fun to play with longer delays in releases, ultimately just hurting the players and driving down revenue for Microsoft.”
id cofounder John Romero also expressed support for those affected. “I’m so sorry for everyone at id Software affected by these layoffs,” he said. “I know what it feels like to leave id while id goes on. It’s a strange and painful thing to step away from a place that holds so much of your work, friendships and history.” Romero is no stranger to Microsoft’s cost-cutting measures: the company reportedly pulled funding for a new title from Romero Games as part of its July 2025 round of Xbox layoffs.
On Monday, approximately 1,600 Xbox employees were laid off, and Xbox CEO Asha Sharma said another 1,600 would be cut over Microsoft’s next fiscal year, which runs through June 2027. The broader reductions at Microsoft affected 4,800 employees in total. So far, Blizzard Entertainment, which operates under Activision, has not been directly impacted. However, in a memo reported by Windows Central, Blizzard president Johanna Faries told staff to “expect to hear more details regarding the day’s events and what they mean for Blizzard in further communications.”
(Source: The Verge)
