REPORT: Microsoft's Cuts Leads To The Closure Of Romero Games, Staffer Claims

There appears to be greater fallout from the recent closures and layoffs at Microsoft. As a result, Romero Games has reportedly closed its doors following the funding being cancelled for an upcoming first person shooter project on Wednesday. It was later revealed Microsoft was named, as they pulled their publishing agreement. Co-founder Brenda Romero posted on BlueSky to confirm a project (planned to run on Unreal Engine 5) was discontinued, and with it, several other unnamed games in the works.

"Last night we learned our publisher has cancelled for our game, along with several other unannounced projects at other studios. This was a strategic decision made at a high level within the publisher, well above our visibility or control," Romero said. "We deeply wish there had been something, anything, we could have done to prevent this outcome. This absolutely isn't a reflection of our team's work, performance, or the quality of the project itself."

According to The Journal, over 100 employees were laid off, based on posts to LinkedIn. Speaking anonymously with the outlet, a staffer described the revelation as "a big shock".

“Everyone is out of a job,” they said. “We had meetings with the publisher the day before this happened, there was no mention of it. “It seemed so far away for us. The title was pretty well developed at the time. ”We’re trying to find other ways of funding the project,” the employee added. “But for now, it’s completely closed, and the studio is closed.”

This comes not much more than a week after Microsoft added more to their mass layoffs to their games division, leading to the cancellation of Perfect Dark, the Rare developed Everwild, and allegedly a Forza Motorsport project (rumor).

SOURCES: TheJournal, romerogames.bsky.social, LinkedIn