The dust from Xbox’s “big reset” cuts is still settling, and it will continue to settle for many weeks to come.
Microsoft Chief Financial Officer Amy Hood has led a massive job elimination at the company, with nearly 5,000 employees expected to lose their positions in the next fiscal year. 3,200 of them will be Xbox only, and some will go away as a result of the sale. The remaining studios were reportedly “gutted” with huge cuts at Obsidian and id Software, despite the success stories of Grounded 2 and DOOM: The Dark Ages.
On the plus side for some, Xbox executives have spent the last few weeks finding buyers for studios that Microsoft’s chief financial officer has lined up to otherwise close. One of them is Undead Labs, the creators of State of Decay, who have been through hell and back to get to where they are today.
Gameplay Inside 3 Hours Of State of Decay 3: Hardest Difficulty – YouTube
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Undead Labs was founded in 2009 and acquired in 2018 as Xbox sought to expand distribution of Xbox exclusive content. Integration immediately ran into problems.
Undead Labs leader, co-founder, and World of Warcraft alum Jeff Strain left the studio in 2019 shortly after the acquisition, and the firm then immediately faced lockdowns that led directly to the Covid-19 pandemic. The destruction was palpable.
Unable to properly develop State of Decay 3, Undead Labs worked on free updates for State of Decay 2 as Microsoft struggled to properly integrate the studio and teams. Even though State of Decay 3 was announced in 2020, it won’t actually enter full development until much later.
This should have been a mitigating factor as Microsoft looked for ways to cut costs. But in typical Microsoft unfortunately short-sighted fashion, Microsoft seems strangely unaware of the potential that lies within.
Indeed, at the time of writing, State of Decay 3 is currently the 28th wishlisted game on Steam, ahead of Halo Campaign Evolved and Gears of War: E-Day. As far as Xbox games go, State of Decay 3 is second only to big-budget blockbuster Fable.
In State of Decay 3, players control a community of zombie apocalypse survivors in a fast-paced, fast-paced sandbox with optional 4-player co-op. (Image credit: Undead Labs and Microsoft)
State of Decay 3 was my most anticipated Xbox game compared to Clockwork Revolution. The first alpha previews we’ve received look incredible, and as an evolving multiplayer title, it has painfully obvious potential alongside games like Grounded and Sea of Thieves.
It’s completely absurd and a shame that Microsoft, for some reason, couldn’t give them at least a little more time and subsidize your own mistakes. Microsoft banks billions of dollars every year and there really is no excuse for the destruction and chaos he causes to his teams.
I’m not naive. I know full well that in order to get paid, you need to have a business that makes money – at least in the long run. But at the same time, Microsoft is also among the hyperscalers chasing AI infrastructure spending based on theoretical growth, using the models of companies fully funded by theoretical money.
In my opinion, State of Decay 3 had more potential than any upcoming Xbox game. (Image credit: Undead Labs and Microsoft)
Of all the cuts and pointless decisions Microsoft has made this week, State of Decay 3, to me, confirms above all that Microsoft’s financial management policies too often lead to hasty, self-defeating mistakes.
There may be projects at Xbox that shouldn’t have been greenlit, and there may be strategic decisions made that most certainly remain downright questionable – but Microsoft is making so many confusing decisions to pay for those mistakes. To me, the fact that Xbox was forced to sell State of Decay 3 truly represents the height of Microsoft’s overall ignorance.
In the future, I look forward to writing about how studios like Undead Labs have expanded and found success freed from Microsoft. But there are many hundreds of developers who may not be so lucky.
It’s possible that the thousands of employees who remain at Xbox will benefit from a more focused management structure at Xbox that isn’t as scattered, but that remains to be seen. And maybe I’m really being naive here.
Microsoft has created an environment where we write articles like this every fiscal year ending in July. A reminder of the missed opportunities and human costs of Microsoft’s legendary short-sighted impatience.
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