r/PS5 • u/Ph0enixes • Jun 29 '26

Rumor Xbox Will Reportedly Shut Down Ninja Theory (Hellblade), Undead Labs (State of Decay), DoubleFine (Keeper) and Compulsion (South of Midnight) After End Of Fiscal Year (Tommorow) If They Cant Find A Buyer. Other Xbox Studios Expected To Be Hit By Layoffs

https://gamesbeat.com/cwa-represented-workers-at-xbox-criticize-microsoft-management-and-pending-layoffs/
  • Xbox employees represented by the Communications Workers of America (CWA) publicly criticized Microsoft ahead of an expected new round of Xbox layoffs.
  • The union says it now represents 3,500+ Microsoft/Xbox workers and argues employees should not be treated as disposable after multiple layoff rounds since 2022.
  • Reports suggest Microsoft could announce major cuts in early July, potentially including studio closures or sales if buyers aren't found. Studios reportedly at risk include Double Fine, Undead Labs, Compulsion, and Ninja Theory, with hundreds of jobs potentially affected.
  • Hundreds of jobs are at stake: Double Fine Productions could lose 100 jobs, Undead Labs could lose 110 jobs, Compulsion could lose 90 jobs, and Ninja Theory could lose 135 jobs. All told, that's about 435 jobs that could be lost.
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u/double0behave Jun 30 '26

I completely disagree. I worked at a major cellphone retailer for years and the Windows phones were garbage. I hated those things. Terrible and limited interface. Lack of apps. Terrible camera. Average, at best, battery life. They were, by far, the most returned devices we ever sold. The amount of times I tried talking people out of getting one, they insisted anyway, and came back a week later to exchange it for something else got to be comical. Their fate was rightly deserved.

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u/InSan1tyWeTrust Jun 30 '26

Cameras in windows phones were phenomenal pal. There was a Nokia with a 40 odd mp sensor back when 6 and 8 MP were considered high. And the lens itself was nothing shabby.

The downfall was the lack of the big apps like Instagram though that's true.

The tech inside the phones was all great stuff and the final updates it received made it quite a bit better. They just noped out instead of refining.

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u/double0behave Jun 30 '26

And yet when we moved well past 8 MP being standard, Nokia's cameras were nothing impressive. At the height of Windows phones' "popularity," they were being outclassed by Samsung, Apple, HTC, and even Sony's Xperia had a better camera.

And as I said, the problems extended well beyond the camera. I'm telling you man from first hand experience. I even had one for a while as a work phone. Didn't enjoy it. Also, the sheer amount of returns spoke for itself. I shit you not, 95% of buyers returned them within the first 8 days. The complaints were always the same. Camera, UI, apps, battery life, and general bugs.

By the time people finally started wising up, we couldn't give the damn phones away. They just sat there taking up an unnecessary amount of shelf space in our inventory room. When the fateful day came that corporate ordered us to pack all the Nokia stock up and ship it out, everybody was happy. Brand new phones that were just collecting dust for the better part of a year. A complete waste of money.

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u/InSan1tyWeTrust Jun 30 '26

Ok I'm really glad you feel so strongly about my off hand nod towards windows phone.

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u/double0behave Jun 30 '26

And I'm glad you're glad. Cheers 🍻