Episode 270 | "A Dark Day"

Absolutely awful. There's no other way to describe the week Xbox has just had, and it sure has many fans genuinely concerned for the Xbox platform. The crew get together for some hopefully insightful discussion on what happens next in the XboxEra Podcast Episode 270.Myself, Nick and Jesse return to chat about all the awful things that happened this week, in addition to some of the good. We saw Microsoft begin mass-layoffs, with other 9000 employees affected worldwide, and a sizeable chunk within the Xbox division. Rare's Everwild was cancelled. Perfect Dark and it's studio, The Initiative, was shutdown. A reportedly promising title, 'Project Blackbird' came to an unfortunate end for Zenimax Online Studios, that saw their leader, Matt Firor depart Xbox forever. Even Turn 10, a legendary studio that had been around since the original Xbox, didn't escape unscathed, with 50% of staff reportedly let go. Even partner studios have been affected, with Romero Games losing their funding from Xbox. Suffice to say, it's left Xbox fans feeling pretty down in the dumps, and I know you'll join me in wishing the developers affected the best of luck in landing on their feet. The drama didn't stop there however. This week also saw another bombshell announcement that saw - for the first time - a PlayStation Studios title land on the Xbox platform. That's right - Helldivers 2 is coming to Xbox, in a move that challenges many preconceived notions about Sony's 1st Party Strategies.We ask the big questions. Can we trust Xbox anymore? Who's to blame for this catastrophic week? Is it really down to Phil Spencer, Matt Booty and Sarah Bond, or do we need to look to the unrealistic expectations of CEO Satya Nadella and CFO Amy Hood? Is Xbox Game Pass to blame? All this discussion and more in the XboxEra Podcast Episode 270.As always, your support makes what we do possible - if you enjoy our work, consider supporting us directly on Patreon. Just head to Patreon.com/xboxera.