Amid the video game cancelations and studio closures that have come as a result of Microsoft’s devastating round of layoffs this week is concern about the fate of pretty much every Xbox game without a firm release date.
Microsoft games canceled as part of the cuts include Rare’s Everwild, an unannounced MMO from ZeniMax Online Studios, the developer of The Elder Scrolls Online, and the Perfect Dark Reboot. The latter’s developer, The Initiative, was shut down. The team working on Blizzard’s mobile game Warcraft Rumble was laid off as new content ceased.
Meanwhile, external developers who were funded by Microsoft were also hit. Romero Games, the studio founded by Doom co-creator John Romero and Brenda Romero, has suffered significant layoffs and the future of its new shooter is in doubt.
That’s a lot to take in, but it begs the question: which Xbox Game Studios games remain? And which, if any, were quietly canceled?
In a memo sent to all Microsoft gaming staff and viewed by IGN this week, Matt Booty, head of Xbox Game Studios, said Microsoft still has “more than 40 projects in active development, continued momentum on titles shipping this fall, and a strong slate headed into 2026.”
Additionally, a source told Variety that every game featured at the Xbox Games Showcase presentation in June is continuing on. So, what were those games, which we now assume are safe — at least for the time being?
Activision’s Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 was at the show, and is certain to come out later this year (despite the layoffs hitting its various developers). inXile game Clockwork Revolution starred at the show, so that’s safe. Obsidian’s Grounded 2 and The Outer Worlds 2 were at the show and we should assume are both safe. It’s a similar deal for Double Fine’s Keeper, The Coalition’s Gears of War: Reloaded, Ninja Gaiden 4, and Indiana Jones and the Great Circle’s Order of the Giants DLC. Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3 + 4, and the ROG Xbox Ally, both at the show, will continue too. Despite the cancelation of Everwild, Rare’s Sea of Thieves continues with new updates.
At the end of the showcase, Xbox boss Phil Spencer teased Forza, Fable, Gears of War: E-Day, and a Halo: Combat Evolved remake for 2026. We assume since those games were mentioned, they’re safe, although it’s worth noting that the Forza mentioned by Spencer no doubt relates to the next Forza Horizon game from Playground, which is also making Fable. Turn 10, which makes the more sim-focused Forza games, was hit hard by the layoffs.
So, we know which games Microsoft still intends to release. But, given the events of this week, it’s now impossible to think about other Xbox games in the works without a degree of concern. Everwild and Perfect Dark were conspicuous by their absence at last month’s show and both were canceled. What else failed to turn up?
Minecraft — remember Microsoft owns Minecraft! — remains huge and safe as houses, you feel. But what about Contraband from Just Cause developer Avalanche Studios? Where’s Undead Labs’ State of Decay 3? Ninja Theory’s Project Mara? Microsoft has a Hideo Kojima game, OD, on its books. Is that still happening? Toys for Bob, the Crash Bandicoot 4 developer and Call of Duty support studio that left the Xbox-owned Activision in February 2024, signed an agreement with Xbox directly to publish its next game. Is that still alive?
And what about Bethesda? ZOS’s MMO has fallen by the wayside, but surely Bethesda Game Studios’ The Elder Scrolls VI and the next Fallout are fine. Starfield’s promised next expansion feels precarious, given Bethesda’s radio silence on the game. And what about Blizzard? As of last year it was reportedly hard at work on a StarCraft shooter. Is that still the case?
It’s only when you run through what wasn’t at the Xbox Games Showcase last month that you realize what’s at stake here: Microsoft owns a huge number of development studios across the globe, from Bethesda to Blizzard and Activision to Halo. When Xbox suffers significant problems, a huge swathe of the video game industry and its developers do, too.
All eyes are on August’s gamescom, where Microsoft is expected to show more of what is has coming down the line. Perhaps Phil Spencer will give fans a clear idea of what’s in the works from Xbox and what isn’t as Microsoft’s multiplatform push soldiers on. It is still planning to release a next-gen Xbox console, although we don’t know when. Is the first-party Xbox handheld Spencer teased last year also still alive? Does Microsoft still plan to release its own gaming app store, despite the failure of Call of Duty Warzone Mobile, Warcraft Rumble, and this week’s significant cuts to Candy Crush maker King?
In the short term, at least, the games we saw in June are still on the way. But the long term future of Xbox remains vague indeed.
Wesley is Director, News at IGN. Find him on Twitter at @wyp100. You can reach Wesley at [email protected] or confidentially at [email protected].
