In an email to staff sent this morning, head of Xbox Game Studios Matt Booty announced the closure of several game studios, including Redfall developer Arkane Austin, Hi-Fi Rush developer Tango Gameworks, Alpha Dog Games, and more. According to the email, as first reported by IGN, Booty wrote the reason for the closures was due to a “reprioritization of titles and resources.” Some staff at the affected studios will be relocated while other studios will completely shut down.

Redfall developer Arkane “will close with some members of the team joining other studios to work on projects across Bethesda,” says Booty. Redfall’s previous update will be its last as Microsoft is ending all development on the game. Servers “will remain online for players to enjoy and we will provide make-good offers to players who purchased the Hero DLC,” says Booty.

Hi-Fi Rush developer Tango Gameworks is closing, and it doesn’t appear that any members of the team will join other Bethesda studios. “Hi-Fi Rush will continue to be available to players on the platforms it is today,” says Booty. Hi-Fi Rush only just debuted on PS5 recently after receiving multiple accolades, award nominations, and critical praise. Aaron Greenberg, vice president of Xbox games marketing, wrote on X that Hi Fi Rush was “a break out hit for us in all key measurements and expectations.”

Alpha Dog Games is the third studio closure today, the developers of the mobile Mighty Doom game. “Mighty Doom will be sunset on August 7 and we will be turning off the ability for players to make any purchases in the game,” says Booty. Microsoft is also moving the team at Roundhouse Studios into ZeniMax Online Studios to work more closely on The Elder Scrolls Online.

Booty admits these changes will be “disruptive” to Bethesda as a whole:

These changes are not a reflection of the creativity and skill of the talented individuals at these teams or the risks they took to try new things. I acknowledge that these changes are also disruptive to the various support teams across ZeniMax and Bethesda that bring our games to market. We are making these tough decisions to create capacity to increase investment in other parts of our portfolio and focus on our priority games.

Bethesda remains one of the key pillars of Xbox with a strong portfolio of amazing games and thriving communities. As we look to the future, there is an impressive line-up of games on the horizon. In 2024 alone we have Starfield Shattered Space, Fallout 76 Skyline Valley, Indiana Jones and The Great Circle, and The Elder Scrolls Online’s Golden Road. As we align our plans and resources to best set ourselves up for success in this complex and changing industry, our teams across Arkane Lyon, Bethesda Game Studios, id Software, MachineGames, ZeniMax Online Studios and the Bethesda publishing and corporate teams will be well-positioned to build new IP, explore new game concepts, and expand on our existing franchises.

Earlier this year, Microsoft laid off 1,900 employees across Xbox Game Studios and the recently acquired Activision Blizzard. It is not known exactly how many employees are affected by today’s closures which add to what has been an almost continuous cadence of layoffs and closures within the video game industry for the last 18 months.