In recent years, Bethesda Game Studios, along with other Microsoft gaming teams, have experienced several waves of mass layoffs. However, the atmosphere was much calmer in the past, claims the studio's senior 3D artist, Alex Nguyen.
Fallout 76
Nguyen shared his memories in an interview with Kotaku. He mentioned that he joined Bethesda several years before Microsoft acquired the studio’s parent company, ZeniMax Media, and is not thrilled with how the situation has changed.
According to Nguyen, layoffs did occur before, but not as frequently.
"That was one of the advantages. That's why many people stayed here for so long and said, 'Yes, this is the place where I'll stay until retirement,' or 'This is where my career will end,' or even 'I enjoy working here because I want to stay in the industry as long as possible.' Essentially, it was one of the main benefits of working at Bethesda and any Zenimax studio," Nguyen admitted.
The artist added that the former management at Bethesda was generally more lenient. As an example, Nguyen cited the failed launches of Fallout 76 and The Elder Scrolls Online, when developers were given the opportunity to fix the situation. However, now such issues are often resolved through layoffs.
It’s worth noting that in early July, Microsoft announced the layoff of 1,600 people from its entire gaming division. It's expected that the same number will leave XBOX by June 30, 2027.