EA Japan GM Opens Up About Microsoft’s Latest Layoffs
It seems it's not just fans that are unhappy with how Microsoft handled the most recent wave of layoffs at Xbox, as even members of other companies have been voicing their opinions on the layoffs and game cancellations.
With the most recent layoffs at Xbox, around 1,000 staff members were let go across multiple studios, including Turn 10 Studios, the minds behind the Forza Motorsport franchise and the closure of The Initiative who were working on the Perfect Dark reboot. With the layoffs came the cancellation of some games, such as the aforementioned Perfect Dark and Rare’s Everwild, prompting some staff to resign and leave Microsoft for new roles.
Fans and critics alike lament the loss of the staff and the cancelled games, but it appears staff from other companies have also taken note. A general manager at EA Japan has shared his thoughts on the matter. Though an employee at EA Japan, GM Shaun Noguchi stressed that his comments are personal and “do not represent the position of EA,” before sharing his thoughts process on social media.
“The game industry is held up by every single creator and member of staff who diligently develops games on the ground. As someone in the same industry, I feel deep pain regarding this decision,” Noguchi opined on X in his native Japanese. When asked by X user Tayetalks about whether games stuck in development hell with not much to show for it should still be supported or not, Noguchi responded “This is just my personal opinion but if a game was in development for 7-10 years, cancelling feels like the worst move. That's a decade of work, potentially a quarter of someone's entire career lost. Even if the final product isn't what people originally expected, I think it still deserves to ship.”
Noguchi further added that “hype with no follow through burns trust both for fans and the studio.” Do you agree with his thoughts? Let us know in the comments.
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