Xbox layoffs show execs “don’t understand games”, argues ‘Doom’ boss

Chris Hays, lead services programmer at Doom developer id Software, has criticised Microsoft after the studio was hit by sweeping lay-offs last month. READ MORE: ‘Doom: The Dark Ages’ soundtrack was inspired by Black Sabbath, Metallica and Spiritbox Last month, Xbox chief executive Asha Sharma announced “the most significant restructure” in the gaming giant’s history. 1,600 members of Xbox staff were let go as part of the sweeping measures, with a further 3,200 Microsoft jobs to be axed in the near future. Microsoft also confirmed Xbox consoles would be getting more expensive for the second time in 18 months. “We hoped another price increase would not be necessary, and we have spent the last several months working with suppliers on options. Unfortunately, console storage and memory prices have increased by more than 2.5x and we expect another doubling by the fall of 2027. The entire consumer electronics industry is struggling with the current components crisis, but the effects are particularly hard on consoles,” Microsoft wrote in a blog post. “Companies don’t get to choose whether their industry changes; they only get to choose whether they change with it,” added Microsoft’s execu...