While Xbox leader Asha Sharma recently announced a “reset” to focus exclusively on major franchises, the decision may have inadvertently pushed The Elder Scrolls VI further behind schedule. According to remaining Bethesda employees, the recent loss of key colleagues with irreplaceable institutional knowledge will severely hinder the development of the upcoming RPG.
The layoffs have plummeted the morale of the remaining staff, who now operate under the constant fear of losing their livelihoods in future cuts. A major bottleneck for the project is the studio’s specialized workflow.
“There is a fear that we will be replaced by cheaper contract labor, or that we will hire replacements who will need to be trained (our tools are proprietary, other developers won’t know how they work),” a member of The Elder Scrolls VI team told IGN.
Because external contractors must be trained from scratch before they can even begin contributing to the RPG, further delays are expected. Consequently, the remaining teams must absorb larger workloads under high stress and fatigue, which employees warn will negatively impact the final quality of the game.
Remaining employees face total job instability. Xbox has made it clear that the 1,600 positions eliminated this week are merely “the beginning” of its restructuring plan.
The corporation intends to lay off an equivalent number of workers over the coming year. As a result, staff members note that someone currently working on The Elder Scrolls VI today might be let go within three to six months, regardless of how good their contributions are.
The layoffs have extended past Bethesda’s core RPG teams to heavily damage sister studios like id Software. Reports indicate that due to the massive workforce losses suffered this week, the creator of the Doom series is now technically incapable of working alone on any medium- or large-scale project.
Amanda Torati is a linguist and postgraduate researcher who specializes in the intersection of storytelling and interactive media. With a deep fascination for the gaming ecosystem, she focuses on deconstructing game narratives and technical trends to make them accessible to players of all levels. At ABWaves Game, Amanda combines her academic background with in-depth research to deliver reviews and guides that are both precise and engaging, ensuring readers stay informed in a fast-paced digital world.
Insomniac Games has addressed a unique detail featured in recent previews and promotional videos for Marvel’s Wolverine: after battles, not only does Logan's body heal through his sharp healing factor, but his suit also regenerates.
Insomniac Games has confirmed that Marvel’s Wolverine will run at 60 frames per second (FPS) with ray tracing enabled as its default mode on the base PlayStation 5 console. The game will also feature widespread environment destruction, reactive vegetation, and launch-day replayability features, including New Game Plus.
Pre-orders for Grand Theft Auto 6 (GTA 6)—already described as unprecedented by publisher Take-Two Interactive—may have already recovered the game's primary production costs, according to market tracking firm Sensor Tower.
Bandai Namco has released a new story trailer for Elden Ring Tarnished Edition, marking the arrival of FromSoftware's action RPG on the Nintendo Switch 2. The game is scheduled to launch on August 28 and is currently available for pre-order.
S-Game has officially opened pre-orders for Phantom Blade Zero on PlayStation 5 and PC alongside the release of a new 11-minute gameplay trailer. The game is scheduled to launch on October 28, offering players both a Standard Edition and a Digital Deluxe Edition.
Developer Arc System Works released the first post-launch patch for the PC version of MARVEL Tōkon: Fighting Souls on Monday (10). The update aims to bring the PC experience to parity with the PlayStation 5 version following a week of widespread reports regarding frame rate drops and online instability.
