The Microsoft Massacre

Episode 216 Microsoft has laid off over 9000 employees, heavily crippling and outright killing some of their Xbox studios. Today, we discuss this tragic layoff, examining the ramifications for Xbox and where this leaves them in the broader games industry landscape. As always, we conclude with the games we're playing (Monster Hunter 4U, Monster Hunter Generations Ultimate, Death Stranding 2: On The Beach). This episode was recorded in July 2025. Intro and outro music composed for Gametalk by Dylan Chase ([email protected]). Questions or comments? Check us out on YouTube, Instagram, Tiktok, and Bluesky at @PodcastGametalk Or chat us up in Discord - discord.gg/JZCj5Qn Timestamps: 0:00 - Opening Banter 6:21 - Microsoft Layoffs and AI Ambitions 12:51 - Perfect Dark Canceled and The Initiative Closed 17:46 - Everwild Canceled and Rare Crippled 28:29 - Project Blackbird Canceled 32:55 - John Romero's New Game Canceled and Turn 10 Cut Down 38:53 - Halo and Call of Duty Studios Have Layoffs 53:59 - Monster Hunter 4U, Monster Hunter Generations Ultimate, and Monster Hunter Wilds 1:05:55 - Death Stranding 2: On The Beach 1:18:32 - Streamer Support for Texas Flooding