Last Updated on Jul 9, 2026 @ 13:18:48 PM.
As times go, there is likely not a worse time in the gaming industry than the last few years. With mass layoffs happening seemingly every other week, studio closures, games cancelled and an understanding that most game developers don’t have any real job security no matter how successful their work.
XBOX has began its restructuring, and as well as removing Obsidian from an Avowed sequel to focus on Fallout, selling or allowing multiple studios to go independent, it’s also laid off the majority of id Software, the studio behind the incredibly successful DOOM franchise. To make matters worse, this comes days after the studio launched its biggest DLC to date, DOOM: The Dark Ages Revelations, a fitting end point for the third game in the trilogy.
In a new insider report from Gamesbeat, it’s come to light that of the previously 180+ strong studio, at most 49 remain. The likelihood of the studio being a driving force behind high-quality, AAA projects is low with that number, and like Obsidian, many expect the remaining staff to be treated as a support studio on other big projects like Fallout and The Elder Scrolls.
Before the layoffs, idSoftware were in the throws of deciding the studios next big project, and, unfortunately for all of us, the four confirmed pitches all sound like bangers.
- Pitch 1 – A multiplayer DOOM game, co-op and more DLC.
- Pitch 2 – ‘Ironwood’, a Westworld-esque “Western-style robot game, with a focus on survival”.
- Pitch 3 – Despite The Initiative being closed down last year, there was some that wanted to work on a new game in the Perfect Dark universe.
- Pitch 4- ‘Fury’, “a project that game director and studio co-director Hugo Martin proposed in the past as an original intellectual property”. Reportedly a sci-fi, noir adventure including Gun Fu and a “cyberpunk-like feel”.
What this means for the studio is unknown, but what we do now know is that the market is once again getting flooded with hundreds of game developers in a time where there simply isn’t enough jobs to go around, all whilst studios get gutted, and the experience and knowledge of industry veterans is gone. Whether we see some new start-ups, or other developers take those on is also unknown, but whilst the industry is recording massive profits and the quality of games seemingly is never better, the behind-closed-doors state of things has never been worse.
For your next read, don’t miss the latest Battlefield Report for Dawn of War IV, or the Mortal Shell II release date and special editions information.
Luke Addison is the Founder and Editor-in-Chief of Thumb Wars. Having previously been a part of multiple outlets over the years, including building an entire gaming team from nothing to something, he thought it best to forge his own path and answer only to himself. As likely to be found playing the latest game as he is in the kitchen relaxing (by cooking), he always brings the same bold and brash attitude to everything he does, with a heavy leaning on sarcasm and dry wit!
